Police arrest five over killing of 14-year-old boy in Osun
By Deborah Oladejo, Osogbo –
The Osun State Police Command has arrested five suspects in connection with the killing of a 14-year-old boy, Olapade Ezekiel, during a shooting incident in Ilobu, Irepodun Local Government Area of the state.
The incident occurred on June 21, 2026, at about 3:30 p.m. at a palm-wine shop along Council Road, beside the Irepodun Local Government Secretariat in Ilobu.
According to the police, the deceased was at the shop with his father and some customers when a group of people allegedly arrived in a Sienna bus and began shooting sporadically.
Ezekiel sustained gunshot injuries and later died, while another person, identified as Matthew John, popularly known as Mofoto, was also injured. The deceased’s father, Olugbenga Olapade, reported the incident at the Ilobu Police Division at about 5 p.m. the same day.
The Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Abiodun Ojelabi, disclosed in a statement on Friday that the arrested suspects were Saheed Kareem, 32, also known as Tanfiani; Ismail Yekeen, 24, known as Asumo Ayan; Abass Afeez, 32, also known as SS Abass; Salako Taofeek, 30, known as Fenuso; and Barrister Abdulrauf Ogunshola.
Ojelabi said the suspects had allegedly confessed to participating in the crime, adding that further investigations identified Taofeek as the person who allegedly fired the shot that killed the teenager.
The police spokesperson added that Taofeek identified a suspect simply known as Alaagba, who is currently at large, as the group’s armourer and custodian of the firearm allegedly used in the operation. He said the police were pursuing the suspect for possible arrest and prosecution.
The command assured the public that the investigation was being conducted professionally and impartially, stressing that credible evidence, forensic findings and other investigative processes would guide efforts to establish the circumstances surrounding the incident and the individual roles of those involved.
