The Osun State Police Command has taken the state’s Commissioner for Environment and Sanitation, Mayowa Adejoorin, into custody following a shooting incident that disrupted an All Progressives Congress (APC) rally in Ilesa on Saturday.
Police spokesperson Abiodun Ojelabi said tactical officers intercepted a white Lexus 350 linked to the shooting. According to his account, a vehicle bearing the registration OSHAO4 had been parked near the APC rally when occupants believed to be Amotekun operatives got out and began firing into the air, sending the crowd scattering. Some rally supporters reportedly gave chase, and one of the fleeing men allegedly brandished a knife to fend off pursuers before escaping.
Following reports of the incident, police tactical teams already stationed around the area moved in and stopped the Lexus, arresting an Amotekun operative along with a second passenger who was later identified during questioning as Adejoorin. Ojelabi said both men were taken to police headquarters, where investigators are now working to determine the extent of the commissioner’s involvement.
Adeleke Campaign Alleges Political Targeting
The arrest quickly drew backlash
from Governor Ademola Adeleke’s Imole Campaign Council, which accused police of selectively targeting Accord Party figures in the Ijesaland area. Council spokesperson Pelumi Olajengbesi told reporters in Osogbo that Adejoorin was picked up while travelling from Ilesa to Osogbo, and claimed the operation was carried out at the behest of a federal lawmaker who had allegedly warned the commissioner beforehand that he could face arrest.Olajengbesi described the arrest as more consistent with an abduction than lawful police conduct, and argued it fits a broader pattern of Accord supporters and leaders in the region being detained on what he characterized as politically motivated grounds during the campaign season.
He questioned what specific offense or evidence justified the arrest and called on Inspector-General of Police Tunji Disu to intervene. The council demanded Adejoorin’s immediate release, insisting there was no lawful basis for holding him, while vowing that continued arrests of Accord figures would not intimidate the party.
Police have not responded publicly to the allegations of political motivation and say their investigation into the shooting and Adejoorin’s role in it is ongoing.
