Operatives of the Edo State Security Squad (ESSS) have arrested four suspected cultists during an early morning raid on a hideout in Egbaen community near Benin, in Ovia North-East Local Government Area of the state.
The ESSS Coordinator, Mr. Noah Idemudia, disclosed the development to journalists in Benin on Tuesday shortly after the operation.
According to Idemudia, the squad stormed the location at about 6:00 a.m. following credible intelligence reports and successfully apprehended the suspects. Dangerous weapons recovered from the hideout linked the individuals to cult-related activities.
The recovered items include four locally made pistols, one cut-to-size gun, one Beretta pistol, and one cutlass.
Idemudia commended members of the public for providing timely and useful information that has enabled the security squad to record significant successes in its operations. He appealed for continued cooperation, stressing that accurate intelligence remains critical to the squad’s efforts to combat crime.
He explained that the squad received information indicating that members of a cult group were preparing to carry out an initiation ceremony in Egbaen community — an event that could have sparked further criminal activities and disrupted public peace.
“We responded by moving to the community, and our operation was successful as we apprehended four suspects and recovered dangerous weapons. We thank the general public and urge them to keep the information coming, as it has been of great help to the squad in the successes recorded,” he said.