How Political Thug Once Sentenced To Death In Ekiti Led Attack On Peaceful June 12 Protesters In Akure, Attempted To Assault Sowore

A notorious political enforcer previously sentenced to death in Ekiti State, Gbenga Aluko, on Wednesday led an attack on peaceful protesters commemorating Democracy Day in Akure, Ondo State.

Aluko, widely known for his violent history with the Oodua People’s Congress (OPC) and alleged involvement in political killings, led a gang of cultists in disrupting the peaceful procession, which began around 7:30 a.m. at Cathedral Junction.

The demonstrators, who had gathered to mark the annual June 12 Democracy Day, were singing and marching under the watch of a police detachment. Earlier, the Ondo State Commissioner of Police, Winifred Olatokunbo, had visited the protest grounds and addressed officers stationed at the venue.

However, according to eyewitnesses, Aluko and his group stormed the event from behind and began physically attacking the protesters. Disturbingly, the attackers appeared to operate with police complicity, with officers allegedly making no effort to intervene.

The situation escalated when pro-democracy activist and former presidential candidate Omoyele Sowore arrived at the scene. As he attempted to alight from his vehicle, the assailants reportedly shouted, “Sowore is here, let’s attack him. He’s the leader of this group!” 

Sowore's vehicle quickly withdrew, narrowly avoiding an attack, while the thugs pursued on foot.

Protesters Demand Police Accountability

In response to the violent disruption and police inaction, Sowore led a delegation—including human rights lawyer Barrister Tope Temokun—to the Ondo State Police Command Headquarters in Alagbaka. 

There, they met with the Commissioner of Police and formally demanded a thorough investigation and the immediate arrest of those involved in the attack.

After the meeting, CP Olatokunbo assured Sowore and Temokun that the complaints would be investigated and necessary action would be taken.

While addressing the state police commissioner, Sowore said, “Another thing I'll tell you that I know sufficiently about the police is that there is no department in which there is not a policeman recording operations. 

“So, you must internally find the policeman in the operation department who recorded. Everything we are having here is being recorded by one of your people. 

“That's what the PRA unit does. So, ask whoever is within the operation who recorded. They saw it. I have it. I have forwarded it to you.

“I'm here, like I told you because I wanted to make this protestation to you. It's not to believe that action will be taken. I'm very sceptical about the police, you know that. But if you take action, it will be the first time a police officer will honestly take action against thugs. But we will monitor it. 

“We want to give you the benefit of the doubt, which is very rare as a currency on our part. But you have said it, that you have the training, you will act on it. And before we came here, I spoke to you on the phone, and you said you had commenced an investigation.

“If nothing then happens, then you don't blame us if we come and shut down this (place). I want to express again how disappointed I was, or I am, about what happened today. And it is because we did everything within administrative, legal, and respectable boundaries to ensure that you are adequately informed of your duty to protect today.

“And your men failed us, just like Nigeria has failed on a daily basis. This is not supposed to have happened at all, in the first place. But if you ask your men to go back there now, the thugs are still there.

“We went back there, they were still there. Yes, they even collected the telephone of the lady you said was recording there. So, I don't need us to express anything more. We have made our case very clear to you, and we expect action within the shortest possible time, in terms of delivering justice to these criminals.”

“And we hope the police will try, no matter how hard it is, to do the job that it is constitutionally designed to do at all times,” he added. 

On January 7, 2025, SaharaReporters reported that armed hoodlums, reportedly led by Gbenga Aluko, a supporter of Governor Aiyedatiwa, had attacked Orita Merin Ayedun Adegbola community in Akure South.

Notably, Aluko has a history with the law, having been arraigned and sentenced to death in the Ekiti State High Court on charges of secret cult membership, unlawful firearm possession, and murder.

The January attack was to impose Aluko’s brother, Goke Aluko, as the chairman of the community’s youth forum.

Convicted of Cultism and Murder in 2020

In September 2020, the Ekiti State High Court in Ado-Ekiti sentenced Gbenga Aluko, then 29 years old, to death by hanging for his involvement in cult-related violence and the killing of three individuals in the state.

Presiding over the case, Justice Abiodun Adesodun held that the prosecution had successfully proven its case beyond reasonable doubt.

"The penalty for the offence committed and established against the accused is death, he is hereby sentenced to death by hanging. May the Lord have mercy on your soul," the judge ruled.

The charges against Aluko stated that he was a member of the Eiye Confraternity, a proscribed secret society, contrary to Section 4 of the Secret Cult (Abolition and Prohibition) First Amendment Law No. 6 of Ekiti State, 2017.

In a confessional statement tendered in court, Aluko reportedly admitted that he and his cult group in Ado-Ekiti were responsible for orchestrating the killings of individuals believed to be rival cultists.

The prosecution, led by Julius Ajibare, called two witnesses during the trial, although no physical exhibits were presented. The defense did not present any witnesses, but Aluko was represented by his counsel, Femi Adetoye.

Aluko and three other members of the Eiye Fraternity—Ayodele Ayodeji (31), Olamide Olurunsola (43), and Adewale Adekunle (23), all from Ifaki Ekiti—had been arrested by the Special Anti-Robbery Squad in February 2019. They were accused of being involved in the targeted killings of rival cult members from the AIYE confraternity across Ekiti and Ondo states.

According to the police, items recovered during the arrest included a cutlass, charms, one Dell laptop, two iPad devices, one Infinix phone, and a photograph of a foreign woman.

A Dramatic Legal Reversal

However, in a dramatic reversal three years later, the Ekiti State High Court in Ado-Ekiti acquitted and discharged Gbenga Aluko in March 2023 of charges including secret cult membership, unlawful possession of firearms, and murder.

The prosecution’s case had included an eyewitness statement alleging that the witness and the deceased, William Ayegboro, were conversing at a beer parlour in the Atikankan area of Ado-Ekiti around 8 p.m. when an unidentified person shot Ayegboro in the face. 

The gunman’s face, according to the witness, was not clearly seen. The victim later died at the hospital.

In his defence, Aluko admitted he had previously been involved in cult activities but claimed he had renounced such affiliations before relocating to Ado-Ekiti. He maintained he had no involvement in the killing, asserting he was in Akure at the time of the incident.

Justice Adekunle Adeleye accepted Aluko’s alibi.

Aluko was consequently acquitted and released from custody.

However, attempts by SaharaReporters to reach Aluko through his known mobile number were unsuccessful, as he denied being the person when contacted, despite Truecaller, a caller ID application, identifying the number as belonging to Aluko Gbenga.