Four persons have been confirmed dead from Easter Sunday’s attack by gunmen suspected to be cultists on Swali community in Yenagoa, Bayelsa capital.

Several residents of the community were injured in the attack.

A resident who witnessed the attack told our correspondent on Tuesday that the suspected cultists wore masks.

The resident who wishes to veil his identity for fear of victimisation said the assailants arrived at midnight in a Toyota Hilux van armed with AK-47 riffles and shot indiscriminately at residents in the Easter mood.

He described the attack as pathetic and regrettable.

It was learnt that two rival cult groups, the Greenlanders and Bobos, have been engaged in supremacy battle over control of the market revenue from the Swali Ultra Modern Market.

The member representing Yenagoa Constituency 1 in the Bayelsa State House of Assembly, Hon Ayibanegiyefa Egba condemned the attack.

Egba, who visited the community on Tuesday described the attack as barbaric and expressed condolences to the families of the deceased and the entire Swali community.

Egba said: “This attack is brutal and I condole with the families of those who have lost loved ones. I called on all the residents to be united and vigilant in the face of this incident.

“I equally call on the youths to shun external influences and also shun vices that can truncate their lives.”

The Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO) in Bayelsa, Mr Musa Mohammed, a Deputy Superintendent of Police who confirmed the attack, said security has been beefed up to restore normalcy in the community.

“Normalcy has returned to the community and security measures have been put in place to ensure no further breakdown of law and order or destruction of lives and property,” Mohammed sad.