Authorities of the Osun State Police command, on Tuesday confirmed the killing of two civilians during an alleged attack on a patrol team while responding to a distress call in Ikire community of Irewole Local Government Area.

A statement by the Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), DSP Abiodun Ojelabi, disclosed that the killing occurred on Monday around 11:00 am along the Ibadan–Ife Expressway.

According to Ojelabi, the patrol team, accompanied by the Divisional Police Officer (DPO) of Ikire Division was responding to a distress call over alleged abduction of one Sunkanmi when they came under heavy gun attack by suspected political thugs.

The statement reads, “Upon arrival at the location, the officers came under sudden and unprovoked attack by a group of unidentified hoodlums. The assailants opened fire on the police officers while they were inside their operational vehicle and succeeded in snatching one AK‑47 service rifle.

“The hoodlums used the stolen weapon to fire indiscriminately, resulting in the tragic loss of two innocent civilians. The deceased have been identified as Nurení Sobowale, male, aged 49 years, of Odeda Area, Abeokuta, and Saheed Akinrole, male, aged 43 years, of Adeagbo Compound, Ikire. Two police officers sustained serious injuries during the attack.”

The statement further added that the police patrol vehicle, forcefully taken away by the assailants was later abandoned and subsequently recovered with multiple bullet holes and a destroyed windscreen.

Nine expended ammunition shells recovered at the scene of the incident have been secured for forensic analysis.

“The remains of the two deceased civilians have been deposited at Oluyoro Catholic Mortuary, and their families have been duly notified. The injured police officers were initially taken to a nearby hospital for emergency treatment and have since been referred to the University College Hospital, Ibadan, for advanced medical care, “the statement concluded.

Meanwhile, the newly appointed Commissioner of Police (CP) of Osun State, Ibrahim Zungura, on Monday visited the scene of the incident for on-spot- assessment of the situation.

He subsequently directed a comprehensive investigation to be conducted by the Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) in charge of the State Criminal Investigation Department (SCID) over the incident.