Army guns down ‘Supreme,’ suspected cult leader declared wanted by Rivers govt
A suspected cult leader, Samuel Ogoso, known as Supreme, who was declared wanted by the Rivers state government in April this year for refusing to surrender his weapons and embrace the fresh amnesty window offered by the government, was on Monday gunned down by the army in Eleme.
The deputy director, Public Relations of 6 Division of the Nigerian Army, Port Harcourt, Col. Aminu Iliyasu, who confirmed the death of the suspected cult leader, said that Supreme died after he bled out from gunshot injuries he sustained in a battle with soldiers.
Col. Iliyaso said in Port Harcourt that Supreme and his men had attacked the troop while the soldiers were responding to a kidnapping incident at Seme community in Tai local government area of the state, explaining that the army overpowered the suspected cult gangsters, shooting them in the process. He said that “Supreme bled out to death before he could receive treatment in the hospital.”
The army spokesman said that another of Supreme’s gang members, ThankGod Ndunaka, was arrested and handed over to the police. He said that a pistol and other ammunition were recovered from the suspects.
Recall that Supreme who was accused of carrying out heinous crimes in Eleme and neighbouring towns in conjunction with his gang members contributed to the set back experienced by the state government amnesty programme when they failed to willingly embrace the programme.
Dismayed by the refusal of Samuel Ogoso (Supreme) to embrace the gesture, the Chairman of the Amnesty Programme and Special Adviser to Governor Wike on Amnesty, Hon. Kingsley Chinda, asked security agencies to arrest him (Ogoso) at the end of the April deadline given to criminals in the state to surrender their weapons.
Supreme, his gang members, and some members of other criminal gangs failed to appear on Tuesday, April 18, before the amnesty committee, at Eleme Local Council Secretariat, to submit their weapons during the disarmament exercise for repentant cultists.
Hon. Chinda, therefore, charged Area commanders, Department of State Security, DSS to track down and arrest Supreme. “We are giving him up to 9am, on Wednesday, April 19, to surrender his weapons.
He will be declared wanted if he fails to comply. Please, Supreme must be made to submit all arms and ammunition in his custody. He is not above the law. And he must comply.
“If he fails to turn himself in to the Divisional Police Officer, DPO, of Ogale, Eleme, by 9am, Wednesday, April 19, our hands and our legs will not be there for him,” Hon. Chinda declared.
