Hoodlums reportedly engaged security personnel attached to the convoy of Osun State Governor Ademola Adeleke in a gun battle at the palace of the Ataoja of Osogbo, Oba Jimoh Oyetunji, on Wednesday.

The incident occurred shortly after Adeleke received his certificate of return from the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and visited the palace to celebrate his electoral victory with the traditional ruler.

Sources at the palace said some hoodlums had allegedly gathered around the area in an unregistered Toyota Sienna before the governor’s arrival.

According to the sources, some of the men were involved in a heated argument before gunshots were fired. The motive for the shooting and the intended target were, however, not immediately known.

A shop owner near the palace, Laide Misture, said gunshots erupted shortly after the governor and his entourage entered the palace.

She said the hoodlums fired from the main gate, prompting the governor’s security personnel inside the palace to respond.

“The shooting was intense for almost three minutes before the hoodlums fled in their vehicle,” she said.

The Osun State Commissioner for Information and Public Enlightenment, Kolapo Alimi, confirmed the incident, saying suspected hoodlums were involved.

He said the governor’s security team engaged the suspected attackers while the convoy was leaving the palace.

“It is true there were gunshots when we were exiting the palace and the governor’s security team had to go and engage them. But the circumstances that led to the shooting in the first place, we do not know,” Alimi said.

He added that officials were only aware of an altercation involving some groups outside the palace, but could not immediately establish what triggered it or identify the groups involved.