For the second time in less than two weeks, armed men have reportedly attacked hostels occupied by students of the College of Engineering, Olabisi Onabanjo University, OOU, at its Ibogun campus in Ogun State.
The latest incident reportedly occurred in the early hours of Friday when about seven armed hoodlums invaded the student hostels, shooting sporadically before robbing occupants of their valuables, including mobile phones and a vehicle.
No fewer than 15 students were said to have been affected by the attack, which reportedly lasted for about two hours between 1 a.m. and 3 a.m.
The attackers were said to have escaped with a black Lexus ES 350 belonging to one of the students.
President of the Nigerian Universities Engineering Students Association at the institution, Oluwafemi Aderupatan, confirmed the incident on Friday.
He expressed concern over repeated attacks on students, blaming the situation on inadequate security presence around the campus community.
“The armed robbers, about seven of them, attacked students in their hostels in the early hours of Friday,” he said.
“They were shooting and threatening to kill the students. They robbed about 15 students of their phones and also went away with a black Lexus ES 350 belonging to one of the students.
“We actually called for police intervention and they came around after the robbers had left, but the deed had already been done.”
Aderupatan stated that the attacks persisted because security measures earlier promised by authorities had yet to be implemented.
“We are equally not happy that the police post and robust security architecture that the police, the school management and community leaders promised to put in place about two weeks ago when we had a similar armed robbery incident have not become a reality,” he added.
According to him, the criminals were taking advantage of the weak security arrangement in the area, stressing that a stronger security presence such as a functional police post or military formation would deter future attacks.
He appealed to Governor Dapo Abiodun to intervene, saying students could no longer continue to live in fear.
Reacting to the incident, spokesperson for the Ogun State Police Command, Omolola Odutola, confirmed that investigations had commenced.
“I can however confirm that the matter is under investigation and the police are already acting on the information available,” she said.
“The Ogun State Police Command takes every security concern within the Ibogun campus environment seriously, and efforts are ongoing to ascertain the facts surrounding the report and take necessary action where required.”
About two weeks earlier, suspected gunmen reportedly invaded student hostels in the same area, assaulting some students and making away with phones, a vehicle and other valuables.
