The Rivers State Police Command says it has arrested two suspected cultists and recovered firearms and ammunition during a signing-out ceremony for final-year students at the University of Port Harcourt.

In a press release signed on Friday by its Public Relations Officer, Grace Iringe-Koko, the command said the suspects, a police officer and a student, were getting ready for clash with rival cultists before their arrest.

Iringe-Koko said, “On September 26, 2025, at about 1600hrs, during the activities marking the signing out of final-year students at the University of Port-Harcourt, the University’s Internal Security team confronted a suspected cult member , Police Corporal Onwukwe Godswill ‘m’ attached to the Elimgbu Division and a 200-Level Biomedical Technology undergraduate student of the University, Ifeanyi Israel ‘m’ in anticipation of a clash with rival Cultists on campus.”

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Both suspects were taken into custody and searched, the statement added.

During the initial search, the PPRO said weapons, including pistols, ammunition, and axes, were recovered.

“A subsequent search of the house of the suspected cult leader, Cpl Onwukwe, by the operatives, resulted in the recovery of the following additional exhibits: one (1) locally made pistol and two (2) machetes,” she added.

The command said the suspects and exhibits are currently in police custody as an in-depth investigation is underway to determine the full extent of their involvement and identify any accomplices.

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Rivers State Commissioner of Police, Olugbenga Adepoju, reiterated the force’s commitment to maintaining peace.

He warned that “there will be no hiding place for criminals in the State” and urged the public to report suspicious activity to security agencies.”

PUNCH Online recalls that the Rivers Police Command last week also arrested a security guard simply identified as Godday over the alleged abduction and defilement of a 14-year-old girl in the Mothercat axis of Trans-Amadi in Port Harcourt.

The suspect was said to have been arrested last Tuesday by officers of the Amadi Police Division in partnership with security personnel of another bank adjacent to the scene of the crime.

The Chairman of the National Union of Road Transport Workers, NURTW, in Lagos, Mustapha Sego, has confirmed that he was invited by the Department of State Services, DSS, over allegations of incitement following a viral video in which he made controversial remarks about the 2027 elections.

In the video, Sego, while addressing union members, had warned that “what happened in 2023 will not be allowed to repeat itself in 2027,” adding in Yoruba that “anybody who makes any mistakes in 2027 will be dealt with” and that the All Progressives Congress, APC, was the party voters must support.

His comments sparked public outrage, with many interpreting them as threats aimed at voters ahead of the next general election.

However, in a follow-up disclaimer video, the NURTW boss denied threatening voters, insisting that his remarks were misrepresented and taken out of context.

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He confirmed that the DSS invited him earlier in the day to clarify the allegations, which he described as “false and baseless.”

“I have always been a man of peace, and my messages are directed only to our members. Everyone has the right to associate freely and choose their affiliations, and I fully respect that,” he said.

Sego alleged that the controversy was being fueled by rival groups seeking to destabilize his leadership in the state.

“There is always an enemy in every job, and we know where this is coming from. This is clearly an attempt to destabilize me and the NURTW in Lagos State,” he stated.

There was panic on Friday after a man, identified simply as Alex, was shot by suspected gunmen at Iyana Isashi in the Ojo Local Government Area of Lagos State.

It was learnt that the incident occurred at about 8 pm.

A resident in the community who requested not to be mentioned due to the nature of the incident had told The PUNCH that the deceased was on his way to meet a friend when two men on a bike accosted him.

One of them was, however, said to have pulled out a gun in the process and shot him at close range.

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The source said, “Alex stays at Cele Niza here in Iyana Isashi. He had just come back from his place of work when he stepped out again, probably to meet a friend. He was on his way when some men on a bike stopped him on the way and shot him. It was the sound of the gunshot that attracted people around, who rushed to the spot and found him lying in a pool of blood. The gunmen were also seen trying to escape from the area while still on the bike.”

According to the source, Alex was immediately rushed to the hospital, where he was being attended to.

Giving an update on the incident on Wednesday, the source confirmed to that the victim succumbed to the gunshot injuries earlier in the day.

“We lost him this morning. He had been in a coma since that Friday, and doctors tried all they could to save him, but he did not make it,” the source disclosed.

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Meanwhile, the victim, otherwise known as Fleximore, was said to have had an altercation with some strangers at a nightclub in the community a day before the incident happened.

Another resident who identified himself simply as Quadri and made this known to The PUNCH on Wednesday said, “Some of his friends who went to a club in the area with him said he had a serious fight with some guys there. They said it started with an argument that later resulted in a confrontation.

“Although they tried to settle it but that is very unusual of him. You hardly hear anything of such about him. Alex is an easy-going person and does not make trouble, but we don’t know the kind of person he had issues with at the nightclub, and that is why some people said the attack was most likely a result of what happened at the club.”

According to Quadri, arrangements are ongoing to bury the late Alex.

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The state Police Public Relations Officer, Abimbola Adebisi, said she was not aware of the incident.

“I am not aware of the incident, but I will call the DPO in the area to confirm,” she said.

Communities in the Iba Local Government Area and adjoining communities along the Lagos–Badagry Expressway have, over the months, witnessed a series of cult-related attacks. The resident had also called for the intervention of the police authorities.