The Ogun State Police Command has dismissed fears of an impending herdsmen attack in the Ajebo community of Obafemi-Owode Local Government Area, following a viral video on social media alleging that armed Fulani men were preparing to strike.

In a statement issued on Friday, the Command’s spokesperson, CSP Omolola Odutola, urged residents to remain calm, describing the claims in the video as misleading and capable of inciting unnecessary tension.

According to Odutola, the Commissioner of Police, Lanre Ogunlowo, immediately deployed a tactical team, led by the Deputy Commissioner of Police (Operations), to the community to carry out an on-the-spot assessment of the situation.

She noted that the multi-agency team included operatives of the Amotekun Corps, So-Safe Corps, local hunters, the Vigilante Group of Nigeria, and members of the Police Community Relations Committee.

Odutola explained that the fact-finding mission revealed no threat to public safety.

“The operatives discovered that the Fulani settlers in Ajebo are not hostile migrants but long-standing residents who have lived peacefully within the community. Children and women were seen in temporary shelters, but no arms or suspicious activities were detected,” she said.

She added that no adult male was present at the settlement because they had travelled to Oyo State for trading activities, consistent with their routine economic pattern.

Further checks uncovered an extended RUGA camp that has reportedly existed for more than a decade without any record of hostility.

The Command said the traditional ruler of the area, Oba Rueben Oluwole, who was said to have authorised the allocation of land to the settlers, has been invited for clarification. The Baale of Alapako, where another cluster of Fulani huts was found, has also been summoned for a meeting with the Commissioner of Police.

Odutola noted that security operatives are maintaining surveillance within the forest area, about 10 kilometres from the main community. She stressed that the deployment was purely precautionary, as no threat was detected.

The Command reiterated its commitment to proactive intelligence gathering and urged residents to desist from spreading unverified information that could trigger panic.

The reassurance comes amid heightened national concerns over recurring farmer-herder tensions linked to land use, grazing routes, and southward migration driven by environmental pressures in northern Nigeria.

In January 2025, Hon. Gboyega Isiaka, the member representing Yewa North/Imeko-Afon Federal Constituency, raised alarm over alleged destruction of farmlands in Araromi-Ibese by suspected herdsmen, warning that livelihoods were being severely affected.