The Edo State Police Command has identified the student killed in a shooting near the University of Benin gate as Alexander Omogiate, as the institution distanced itself from the violent incident linked to suspected cult activities.

Omogiate was reportedly shot dead on Sunday evening by masked gunmen while driving out of the university’s main gate at Ugbowo in a Mercedes-Benz GLK.

Eyewitnesses said the attackers intercepted the vehicle, opened fire at close range, and fled the scene.

The deceased was said to have completed his examination in the Department of Political Science about an hour before the attack.

Three other occupants of the vehicle sustained gunshot injuries, while a female passerby was also hit by a stray bullet during the incident.

One of the students at the scene said, “They shot him at close range, and there was no way he could have survived the attack. Two others in the vehicle were also injured and rushed to the hospital.”

Operatives from the Ugbowo Divisional Police Headquarters later evacuated the victim’s remains from the scene.

Confirming the incident in a statement on Monday, the spokesperson for the Edo State Police Command, CSP Eno Ikoedem, said the attack occurred around 5pm on May 10, 2026.

She said preliminary investigations showed that the victims — Onwuke Blessed, Alexander Omogiate, and Chinenye Christian Mbagwu — were driving out of the university when another white GLK vehicle intercepted them at the UNIBEN main gate.

“The occupants of the vehicle lowered the glass and opened fire on the victims before escaping to an unknown destination,” the statement said.

According to the police, all the occupants of the vehicle sustained varying degrees of injuries, while a female passerby, identified as Dorathy Ubah, was also struck by a bullet.

The victims were rushed to the University of Benin Teaching Hospital for treatment, where Omogiate was later confirmed dead.

The state Commissioner of Police, Monday Agbonika, has ordered a full-scale investigation into the incident and directed operatives to track down those responsible.

The command appealed to members of the public with useful information to assist the investigation to contact the nearest police station or the command’s emergency lines.

Meanwhile, tension had reportedly heightened on campus a day before the killing after another student narrowly escaped an attack near the Social Science Lecture Theatre.

The student was allegedly chased by suspected hoodlums wielding machetes on Saturday and later sustained a bloody nose during a fight captured in a viral video circulating online.

Reacting to the Sunday killing, the management of the University of Benin dissociated the institution from the clash, insisting that the incident occurred outside the campus and did not involve members of the university community.

In a statement issued by the institution’s Public Relations Officer, Benedicta Ehanire, the management described the incident as a fallout of suspected cult activities.

“The University of Benin has dissociated its staff and students from the violent clash outside the Ugbowo campus of the institution,” the statement read.

“Preliminary reports indicate that the incident is a fallout of cult activities outside the campus and does not involve any university staff member or student.”

The university management expressed regret over the fatality and urged staff and students to continue their academic activities peacefully.

In a related development, the Chairman of the university’s Cult Renunciation, Reconciliation, Rehabilitation and Interfaith Committee, Venerable Egbenusi Osazee David, resigned from his position over the incident.

In a resignation letter dated May 10 and addressed to the Vice-Chancellor, Prof Edoba Omoregie (SAN), Egbenusi alleged that he was threatened by the VC after forwarding video clips of the violence to him.

According to the clergy, he had sent footage of suspected cult activities and the fatal shooting to the VC in the interest of campus security.

He claimed that the VC reacted angrily and demanded that the videos be deleted.

“I wish to state plainly that I have not deleted the clips and shall not do so. A human life was lost, and any investigative process requires that evidence be preserved, not destroyed,” he stated.

However, the university management dismissed the allegations as “spurious and unguided.”

In a counter-statement issued on Monday, the university accused Egbenusi of acting in bad faith and described his resignation letter as mischievous.

The management said the VC had remained committed to repositioning the institution and would not be distracted by controversy.

The university also stated that it was relieved by Egbenusi’s resignation, alleging that he had not functioned effectively in his role as chairman of the anti-cultism committee.

It further assured students and stakeholders that all campuses of the institution remained calm and safe. (Text, excluding headline: The PUNCH)

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