A fresh communal clash has claimed the lives of five persons at Gbalegi village, a “disputed boundary” between Idanre and Akure in Ondo State.

The incident occurred in the early hours of Friday.

A source, who confirmed the clash to journalists in Akure, explained that the villagers had been at loggerheads over the ownership of the boundary.

He also stated that both local and national investors, who had planned to invest in the area with various business ideas, were chased away due to the dispute.

“It was shocking to us as we woke up to the dastardly killing of five persons in the village.

“Prior, there had been fights among the locals over who owns the land or who is entitled to the boundary, and this led to why investors who came to the area were chased away,” he said.

He further noted that those killed were taken to a nearby police station in the town before their corpses were moved to the state hospital’s morgue.

Ondo police spokesperson, Funmilayo Odunlami-Omisanya, confirmed the clash in a statement, explaining that the police received a distress call about a group of thugs who mobilized themselves to the Gbalegi area, a disputed land between Akure and Idanre, and attacked the people.

Mrs Odunlami-Omisanya revealed that police officers moved to the scene, arrested seven persons, and recovered four corpses with bullet wounds from the bush.

“The police, on receipt of the information, moved to the scene and arrested seven (7) people who were in possession of charms and seven single-barrel guns with a cache of live ammunition and expended ones. The police further combed the nearby bush areas and found four (4) corpses with bullet wounds.

“The CP calls for caution in handling cases related to boundary issues and urges communities involved in land disputes to approach the law court for proper redress rather than resorting to self-help or violence,” she stated.

The latest clash comes barely a week after a similar incident occurred between indigenes of Owake and Ebo communities in the Akoko South-West Local Government Area of the state.

The previous clash claimed two lives and destroyed properties worth millions of Naira during a fight between youths of the communities.