A police corporal and a student from the University of Port Harcourt (UNIPORT) have been arrested on the university campus for allegedly plotting a cult clash. The suspects were apprehended by the university’s internal security team, who thwarted the potential violence during a “signing out” celebration for final-year students.
The arrested individuals were identified as Police Corporal Onwukwe Godswill, attached to the Elimgbu Division of the Rivers State Police Command, and Ifeanyi Israel, a 200-level Biomedical Technology undergraduate at UNIPORT.
The arrests took place on September 26, 2025, around 4:00 PM. According to a statement by the Rivers State Police Command’s Public Relations Officer, SP Grace Iringe-Koko:
“The University’s Internal Security team confronted a suspected cult member, Police Corporal Onwukwe Godswill… and a 200-Level Biomedical Technology undergraduate student… in anticipation of a clash with rival Cultists on campus.”
Operatives from the Command’s Anti-Cultism Unit (ACU) were swiftly dispatched, leading to the immediate arrest of the duo.
During the initial search, authorities recovered:
- Two locally made pistols
- Four rounds of live cartridges
- Two rounds of 9mm live ammunition
- One small axe
A follow-up search of Corporal Godswill’s residence further uncovered an additional locally made pistol and two machetes. Both suspects and the recovered items are currently in police custody as a full investigation into their cult involvement and criminal activities continues.
This incident underscores the persistent and often violent challenge posed by cultism across Nigerian tertiary institutions. Far from benign social groups, university cults (or confraternities) have evolved into dangerous, often armed gangs involved in drug use, extortion, sexual violence, and deadly territorial clashes, especially on campuses during large student gatherings like graduation celebrations.
The phenomenon destabilizes academic environments and poses a severe security risk. The involvement of a serving police corporal in this alleged plot highlights the disturbing reality of security personnel complicity or involvement in criminal networks, a factor that often frustrates efforts by university administrations to stamp out the violence and protect students. The prevalence of these groups remains a major obstacle to safety and peaceful education in Nigerian universities.
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