Numerous suspected cultists were arrested at the main campus of the Enugu State University of Science and Technology (ESUT), located in Agbani, Nkanu West Local Government Area, News About Nigeria reports.
According to reliable sources, the suspects, estimated to be around 50 in number, consisted mainly of students from the university who were allegedly involved in various cult-related activities at the time of their arrest.
Confirming the incident, Ikechukwu Ezeanioma, the public relations officer of the institution, acknowledged the arrests but stated that he was not aware of the exact number of students detained by the police.
He also revealed that the Vice Chancellor of the university, Prof. Aloysius-Michaels Okolie, was in contact with the police to verify the accuracy of the reports.
While the official number of arrests remains uncertain, the President of the ESUT Students Union Government (SUG), Donatus Okolieuwa, claimed that over 50 innocent students had been taken into custody by the police.
Okolieuwa criticized the arrests as an unjustified crackdown on students, describing the situation as highly reprehensible and condemnable.
Providing further details on the incident, the SUG President recounted, “During a students meeting in Enugu, I received a call informing me that armed men in two Hillux vans and a Sienna bus had stormed the school cafeteria at around 5pm/6pm.
A gunshot was fired into the air, causing students present to panic and flee for their safety.”
He continued, “In the chaos that ensued, the armed men pursued the students, rounded them up, and then entered the cafeteria.
They arrested everyone inside, including those playing games, female students charging their devices, cafeteria staff and manager, as well as members of our university security.”
According to Okolieuwa, the Chief Security Officer (CSO) of the school was notified of the incident and immediately mobilized his team to the scene.
Upon their arrival, the CSO recognized two of the detained individuals as members of the university’s security personnel and successfully had them released.
“The armed men subjected our students, including females, to humiliation before eventually releasing the female students after confiscating their phones and power banks.
They then took away all the male students present,” Okolieuwa added.
The SUG President promptly contacted the Vice-Chancellor and the Department of State Services (DSS) officers responsible for student affairs at both the Agbani and Enugu campuses.
