A human rights group, Save the Poor and Needy Charity Initiative (SPANCI) has tasked the Inspector General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun to investigate cases of land grabbing and assault of land owners in Ikoyi Ile in Oriire local government area in Oyo state.
The group made this declaration via a petition signed by its President, Comrade Yemi Ezekiel Bello and addressed to the IGP.
Bello in the petition made available to journalists on Sunday, said that the group has the consent of Adeniji Joel, Elijah Oyeleye and the people of Ogunere, Temidire, Egbejoda and other neighboring villages to write the petition to the IGP.
Bello in the petition said that one Mr. Abel Olaleye Ajadi Elemo has been using thugs with guns and other dangerous weapons to attack people of the above mentioned villages.
The group claimed that the suspect has forcefully entered, seized lands in the villages and had damaged the economy crops and plants of the people of the villages.
The group in the petition whose copies were sent to the Commissioner for Justice and Attorney General of Oyo State, DPP Oyo State ministry of Justice, Commissioner of Police, AIG Zone 11, Area Commander Owode Area command Ogbomoso and DPO Ikoyi Ile police division, also alleged that men of Owode area command and Ikoyi Ile division have conspired with the suspect.
The group while speaking further said that many villages have been wrongfully arrested.
It therefore called on the IGP to intervene.
“We have the consent of Mr Adeniji Joel, Elijah Oyeleye and mentioned above villages people herein after referred to as our clients, who are about five or six villages namely Ogunere, Temidire, Egbejoda and others to write this letter so that their rights might be protected.
“Our clients told us and we investigated the matter and found their allegation to be true and correct that Mr Abel Olaleye Ajadi Elemo who is a serial land grabber and uses thugs with guns and other dangerous weapons attacked them and forcefully entered, seized their lands, maliciously damaged their economy crops and plants and sold their land. They alleged that many times Abel Ajadi Elemo will send his thugs to invade their farmland and assault people claiming Elemo is the owner of land.
They alleged that despite all these criminal activities of Abel Ajadi Elemo and his boys for years, Ikoyi Ile police division and Owode Area Commander’s men have always protected him to have his ways and has not prosecuted him or his thugs but rather will manipulate the case in a way to obstruct, prevent, pervert and defeat the cause of justice but rather turn the case against them and rather try to implicate them in favor of the Elemo’s.
“The recent one is the case of Ogunere people which was reported to us when he sent his thugs to invade Ogunere villagers farmland and assaulted the farmers and seized their cutlasses, hoes and other equipment used for farming which was confirmed to us by Ikoyi Ile police DCO and they later went to do the same but took that one to Elemo community leader who is Abel’s father that told them to bring money to collect it back.
Just few days ago Abel sent his thugs to attack Temidire farmers and one Mr Adeniji Joel was assaulted with club and cutlass on his head and was taken to hospital by the men of Ikoyi Ile police division, another man Mr Elijah Oyeleye was assaulted with him but escaped and saw some people from Elemo called Omo Meji Onidananun vandalising Elemo’s family house building to fix the assaulted and incriminate them but to our surprise the police did not prosecute Abel and his thugs but only arrested 4 people from Elemo’s and two people from the assaulted that they vandalised Elemo’s family house.
“We believe and have seen that the allegations against the police and Abel Ajadi Elemo is true and that if your noble office does not do the needful police will jeopardize the case in favor of Abel Ajadi Elemo and his thugs against our clients and our clients will be wrongfully and maliciously prosecuted for Kidnapping and other criminal offences which they didn’t commit and more casualties will still surface as more villages and their land will be grabbed by Abel Ajadi Elemo who has been handpicked by their local government to be installed as baale which is seriously dangerous for the peaceful co habitation of the neighborhood.
“We also believe that the police may have tampered or changed the statements of our clients to incriminate them. We hereby demand justice on the said matter and that your good office which has been doing credibly well and has such lawful jurisdiction on the said matter quickly act and call both Owode area commander’s men and Ikoyi Ile police division men to order before they maliciously prosecute our clients Adeniji Joel and Elijah Oyeleye on a wrongful allegation in favor of Abel Ajadi Elemo as they have done before because our clients are poor.
We demand for immediate arrest and prosecution of Abel Ajadi Elemo and his thugs in the interest of justice and fair hearing.
“We also wish to clearly state that both Ikoyi Ile police division and Owode area commander’s men investigation should not be trusted because they are working for Abel Ajadi Elemo and not for justice to present innocent as criminal. Please make investigation from Oyo state taskforce on real property protection and antiland grabbing law to know who Abel Ajadi Elemo is”
Meanwhile, effort to reach Mr. Abel Olaleye Ajadi Elemo was abortive.
