No fewer than five persons have sustained varying degrees of injury after suspected cultists let loose at Idiroko and Owutu areas of Ikorodu, Lagos.

The hoodlums identified as Lion Base Boys of Dagbolu Street, in Idiroko, were said to have started making trouble since Monday.

Trouble was said to have started after a young boy from Ajose Street seized a phone belonging to another boy from Dagbolu, who was beaten up.

The one whose phone was seized was said to have gone to report to the Lion Base Boys in his street, who retaliated and the whole incident erupted.

It was gathered that the hoodlums went about looting houses and shops and injuring defenceless residents.

Some of the injured victims were stabbed on their heads and hands while they made attempts to defend themselves before the police arrived the scene.

A resident who shared pictures of the incident on social media wrote: “When Owutu Police Division didn’t show up, people were left to defend and fight the boys themselves when they began to burst homes and shops.”

It was gathered that it took the deployment of policemen attached to the Rapid Response Squad (RRS) to restore normalcy in the area.

As at the time of this report, the police had conducted raids in the neighbourhood and arrested several suspects.

Meanwhile, suspected cultists also struck around Council Bus Stop, Idimu, Isheri Osun, and Ikotun on Wednesday, shooting sporadically.

The hoodlums identified as No Salary Boys, said to be numbering about 30 and on motorcycles, stormed the areas around 6pm, allegedly to honour one of theirs who died recently.

They were said to have wielded guns and cutlasses, causing panic among residents, who raised alarm on Twitter appealing for police reinforcement.

According to Lagos Police Spokesman Bala Elkana, a Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP), there was no cause for alarm at Idimu as police were carrying out operations there.

For the Ikorodu incident, Elkana confirmed that 72 suspects were arrested, adding that calm had returned to the area. (The Nation)