Taiwo Popoola
At least three people were killed during violent clashes that erupted at a masquerade festival in the Lagos Island area of Lagos State.
Although the exact trigger of the killings remains uncertain, accounts suggest that the event was hijacked by suspected cult members, turning what began as a cultural celebration into a bloody supremacy battle.
Residents said the violence broke out shortly after the festival ended, spiralling into chaos.
“We had just finished the festival when a fight broke out among some boys suspected to be cultists.
“They started hurling bottles and brandishing weapons. Nobody could intervene; everyone simply ran for safety,” a community member narrated under anonymity.
Videos circulating online showed suspected cultists engaging in heavy gunfire along Lagos Street. In one clip, at least five gunshots rang out, while another showed a group of assailants brutally beating a victim.
Another resident, who identified himself as Kazeem, said the unrest stretched late into the night.
“The fight started in the evening and continued until midnight. Many of us couldn’t sleep because of the noise and the destruction,” he recounted.
The violence also gained attention on social media, with the platform Naija Confra, known for tracking cult-related clashes, reporting that gangs had taken over the masquerade festival and turned it into an armed confrontation.
In reaction to the killings, the Lagos State Police Command announced heightened security across Lekki, Ajah, Ogombo, Elemoro, and surrounding areas.
According to a statement by police spokesperson Benjamin Hundeyin on Tuesday, the command redeployed divisional police officers to restore order and deployed the Eko Strike Force, a tactical intervention unit, to clamp down on criminal activity.
Hundeyin said: “The Lagos State Police Command has commenced a discreet investigation into the unfortunate incident that occurred on Sunday in Lekki Phase 1, where a clash between rival cult groups resulted in three deaths.
“The Commissioner of Police, CP Olohundare Jimoh, personally mobilised to the scene with joint police teams to ensure a swift response.”
He added that newly established anti-cultism and tactical squads under the Elemoro Area Command had been deployed, leading to multiple arrests.
Raids carried out in parts of Lekki reportedly resulted in the arrest of 23 suspects linked to the violence.
