A commercial bus driver was at the weekend beaten to death by hoodlums over the payment of ‘owo ile’ in Arigidi Akoko in the Akoko North-West Local Government Area of Ondo State.

The driver, identified as Akeem Olanipekun, was allegedly beaten to death with a charm during a fight, which ensued between him and the alleged killers at the Imo area of the town.

According to an eyewitness, the 50-year-old accompanied his friend, who operates a rental business in the community, to erect canopies for a ceremony at the Imo quarters when the fight began.

The eyewitness said,

“When they were about erecting the canopy, the ‘area boys’ approached them for the payment of ‘Owo Ile’ before the canopies could be erected.

“This led to a hot argument between the deceased and the boys, who went home and brought the charm with which they beat Akeem over the non-payment of the ‘Owo Ile’. The deceased, after being beaten with the charm, was shivering and later gave up. Currently, there is tension in the town because of possible reprisal by the family of the deceased, who had two wives and some children.”

The eyewitness added that immediately after the incident, the suspected killers fled the community.

The police Area Commander for Ikare Akoko, Mr Razak Rauf, confirmed the incident and promised to arrest the perpetrators, who are currently at large.

It was learnt that the corpse of the deceased had been deposited in the mortuary of the Ondo State Specialist Hospital, Ikare Akoko.