Barely four days after two rival groups clashed over revenue collection on Lagos Street in Benin, Edo State capital, a security guard at the popular street has been killed by unknown gunmen.
The deceased, identified as Oboh John, was said to have been attacked on Sunday, alongside his colleague who was left unconscious.
The rival groups said to be from the Osulas and Obazee families have been at war over revenue collection from the street traders, which led to a fierce duel last Thursday and left no fewer than three persons sustaining injuries.
It was gathered that traders on the street were made to part with as much as N600 daily for tickets, no mater the value of their wares.
It was also learnt that goods worth millions of naira belonging to some of the traders were looted during the attack.
One of the traders, Ebere Okafor, told our correspondent that the hoodlums broke into her shops and carted away expensive hair attachments.
“They took many weavons. They didn’t go for the synthetic weavons.
“They went for the Brazilian and Peruvian ones,” She said.
But a leader in the street, Omuwa Elegun popularly known as “Madam Lagos” blamed the killing and robbery on the rivalry between the two families over revenue collection.
Elegun said one of the guards was taken to an enclosed area where he was killed.
Elegun said, “The area boys are causing this. Some of them want to eat beyond what they are required to collect. They are extorting money from the people. The chairman said the money collected from the traders is too high.”
“Those of us assigned to collect revenue don’t collect up to N100. Shops in my house were broken into. They dragged the guard somewhere and killed him.”
It was, learnt that the police from the Oba Market Division, deposited the remains of the deceased guard at a mortuary.
However, the Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Noble Uwoh, could not be reached on the incident at the time of filing the report.