300 people arrested on the Mokolo Market incident

About 300 people have been arrested in connection to the Mokolo Market chaos yesterday.

The exercise conducted by law enforcement elements was aimed to unmask the protagonists of the attack on the police station of the Yaounde II Sub-Division.

The Mokolo market in Yaounde, located at Yaounde II Sub-Division, was in a confusion state on Thursday, January 7, 2016.

Some young people from the Briqueterie neighborhood which is close to the market attacked the police station located in the 2nd district located in the market.

They were protesting against a police operation which had caused the death of a thug the day before. The thug, according to a security source, had been denounced by one of his victims, a woman who called the police for help.

According to some traders, the local youths were armed with spears, knives, and machetes, and decided to massacre all passersby and shopkeepers they met at the Mokolo market.

The event has caused many casualties among the traders, and the theft of large quantities of goods, according to the 5:00 PM news on the CRTV national station.

Security forces have established a security cordon and operated raids. According to the D.O of the Yaounde II Sub-Division Ousmanou Nji Yampen, the situation is under control.

“It’s the least I can say for now. We ordained a police operation, to that effect, firstly to reassure the population, and secondly to actively seek suspects who are perpetrators of these reprehensible acts. We have currently detained nearly 300 people who are being exploited.”

Ousmanou Nji Yampen stated that “the safety apparatus that we have in place will be maintained throughout the night and beyond to ensure that the law is enforced.”

As for traders injured during clashes “we have visited a few at the Yaounde Emergency Center, their prognosis is largely positive, they are out of danger,” he said.