THE Edo State Police Command has arrested 28 suspected cultists in a coordinated house-to-house raid targeting known cult hideouts in Benin City. The operation, carried out on June 4, 2025, between 4 p.m. and 10 p.m., forms part of the Command’s ongoing efforts to combat cult-related crime across the state.
In a statement issued in Benin City, the Command’s Public Relations Officer, SP Moses Yamu, confirmed the arrests. He revealed that 19 of the suspects were screened, found culpable, and subsequently charged in court. The raid, according to Yamu, was part of the Command’s broader crime-fighting strategy, which includes increased police visibility and sustained community engagement.
He noted that the house-to-house approach aims to ensure that cultism is either eradicated or significantly curtailed in the state.
Three of the suspects reportedly confessed to being members of the Eiye and Aye confraternities and have already been arraigned.
Yamu added that the Command is committed to maintaining the pressure on criminal groups and warned individuals involved in cult activities to renounce their membership, relocate from Edo State, or prepare to face the full weight of the law under the Edo State Secret Cult and Other Related Activities (Prohibition) Law.
