Rival cult groups clashes have struck at the Federal Polytechnic, Offa in Kwara state.
In the bloody brawl, two students including one higher national diploma (HND1) Toyin Bamidele of the Faculty of Food Science and Technology, and a male student were hacked down.
It was gathered that the deceased male student who is yet to be identified was the leader of a cult group.
He was said to have been macheted to death within the premises of the polytechnic.
Late Toyin Bamidele said to be the girlfriend of the leader of another cult group was allegedly trailed to her residence in Offa town where she was gunned down.
Eyewitness accounts added that the death of the two students might not be unconnected with a ‘sign out’ ceremony in the nation’s tertiary institutions whereby students celebrate the end of their last examination, which turned awry.
Residents of the area said “When we heard the sound of the invasion, some of us had to run for our safety.
“But at the end of the attack which lasted about fifteen minutes, when we got to her room, we discovered the lifeless body of the deceased and then informed the appropriate authorities of the incident.”
The remains of the deceased have been deposited at the morgue of the General Hospital in Offa.
The institution has condoled with the families of the victims.
Acting Public Relations officer of the polytechnic, Mrs Folake Akinloye in a statement said that “management of Federal Polytechnic Offa, Kwara state has commenced investigation into the killing of Miss Toyin Bamidele, an HND 1 Food Technology student of the institution by some unknown assailants.
“The incident was received with rude shock the murder of Bamidele who was allegedly hacked to death in her rented apartment on Thursday 16 November 2023.
“The management condemns this inhumane act in strong terms as it is strange in the Polytechnic community.
“While the circumstances behind the incident remain unknown, investigations are currently ongoing to reveal the identity of the evil occurrence by the appropriate security agencies and, as a matter of urgency, to fish out the culprits.”
She further said that “her demise is an irreparable loss to the entire management and Staff of the Polytechnic.
