A teenager identified simply as Chike, who reportedly travelled from Delta State to visit a friend in Lagos, has been shot dead by suspected cultists in the Ikotun area of the state.

PUNCH Metro learnt that the incident occurred on Sunday.

The victim was said to have gone to withdraw money from a Point-of-Sale operator alongside his friend when he was accosted by a group of youths.

An eyewitness, who identified himself simply as Abiodun, told our correspondent on Thursday that the assailants shot the teenager at close range before fleeing the scene.

“He was returning from a PoS shop where he had gone to withdraw money with his friend when a group of boys approached them. They spoke briefly, and suddenly one of them opened fire on him,” he said.

“The attackers fled immediately, leaving him in a pool of blood.”

Abiodun added that the victim’s friend was spared during the attack, which caused panic among residents.

A photograph obtained by our correspondent showed the teenager lying lifeless at the scene of the incident.

Meanwhile, an anti-cultism advocacy platform, in a post on Monday, suggested that the killing might be cult-related, claiming the victim had attempted to surrender his valuables to the attackers.

According to the platform, the deceased, also known as “Ejanla,” resided in Asaba, Delta State, and had travelled to Ikotun to visit a friend.

“He had just withdrawn money from a POS outlet with his friend’s brother when they were surrounded by some men. Sources said the attackers shouted ‘Haba-Krier’ before and after shooting him.

“It was reported that he offered them his gold and the cash he had just withdrawn, but they still shot him and fled,” the post read.

Efforts to reach the spokesperson for the Lagos State Police Command, Abimbola Adebisi, were unsuccessful, as calls and text messages sent to her phone were not responded to as of the time of filing this report.

The incident has heightened concerns over recurring cult-related violence in parts of Lagos, particularly in suburban communities, despite ongoing security operations.