The personnel of the Correctional Service were able to manoeuvre their way to the court.
There was pandemonium in Ilorin metropolis on Thursday as a vehicle conveying inmates to court belonging to the Nigerian Correctional Services was involved in an accident.
The accident was with a tricycle and a motorcycle at Emirs Market (Oja-Oba), Ilorin.
According to an eyewitness, Alhaji AbdulRaheem Salami, the accident occurred in the early hours of Thursday and reportedly crushed six people, who were rushed to the University of Ilorin Teaching Hospital.
He said that five people were said to have been crushed at the Emirs Market and another one along Niger Road in Ilorin while the driver was trying to escape mob action.
He added that the degree of injuries sustained could not be ascertained as they were rushed to the hospital immediately.
A resident of the area who pleaded anonymity said angry mob who were disenchanted with the happening attacked and vandalised the bus escorting the inmates’ vehicle to court.
He added that the van conveying the inmates escaped from the scene of the accident to its destination without any hitch.
He added that the accident led to a protest by some group of Okada riders in the Ilorin metropolis.
Speaking with newsmen on the incident, AbdulAkeem Sulaiman, the Zonal Spokesperson of the Motorcycle Riders Association in the state urged the government to ensure justice for their members.
He said those crushed in the accident were out in search of their means of livelihood to feed their families.
Sulaiman appealed to the authority of the Nigeria Correctional Service and the state government to intervene in the matter and ensure Justice is done.
Confirming the incident, the Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), SP Ajayi Okasanmi, said normalcy has been restored in the areas where the protest took place.
He said the police would take necessary steps to ensure justice was done to those affected in the incident.
In a statement issued by the state NCoS Public Relations Officer, Philip Adegbulugbe, claimed that the suspected hoodlums attempted to free high-profile inmates conveying to court in the area which resulted in pandemonium.
The personnel of the Correctional Service were able to manoeuvre their way to the court.
However, those who sustained injuries have been moved to the hospital for medical attention and are responding to treatment and no life was lost.
