By SIMON EBEGBULEM & GABRIEL ENOGHOLASE

BENIN—FOLLOWING the cult war which has led to the death of over 12 persons in different parts of Benin City, Edo State in the last few days, 40 suspected cultists, allegedly involved in the brutal killings, were, yesterday, paraded by the Edo State Police Command.

The Inspector General of Police, Hafiz Ringim, has ordered the immediate prosecution of the suspects, just as he assured that the police would clamp down on leaders of cult groups in the state.

The Edo State Police Commissioner, Mr David Omojola, who paraded the suspects, yesterday, also disclosed that the police foiled a robbery attempt in a bank in Aganebode, saying that one person was killed while one of the robbers was arrested. He also said that the police was on the trail of the kidnappers, who abducted the former Vice Chancellor of the Ambrose Alli University, Ekpoma, Prof. Denis Agbonlahor.

Disclosing how the cultists were arrested, the CP narrated that “some of the suspects were picked up while converging for a retaliatory attack.

Firearms and other dangerous weapons were recovered from  them. The leader of one of the cult groups, Mr Kehinde Olotu is equally in our custody. I have given my DPOs a marching order to arrest all persons suspected to be cultists. We cannot afford to fold our hands and watch our young ones kill themselves in the name of cultism.”

He, however, lamented that the Command lacked the wherewithal to tackle criminals in the state, saying that “though the Federal Government is doing its best, there are areas that still need improvement. The Command will do a lot better with more losgistics. At the moment, the command is faced with acute shortage of patrol vehicles and other vital logistics.”

“There is no divisional operational department that has more than one serveable vehicle. Special Anti_Robbery Squad (SARS) for instance, which hitherto had instilled fear into criminals hardly can boast of two operational vehicles and this has hampered the activities of the department” he stated.