Nigeria, April 22 -- An Osun State High Court building in Ilesa has been destroyed after unknown persons suspected to be arsonists set the building ablaze.

Despite efforts by the state fire service to contain the blaze, the court building suffered extensive destruction when firefighters arrived.

Reacting to the incident, Governor Ademola Adeleke, in a statement by his spokesperson, Olawale Rasheed, on Monday, described the incident as a " threat to democracy".

The governor directed security agencies to launch a thorough investigation into the incident and track down the perpetrators.

He also instructed that security be beefed up across all court premises in the state to prevent similar incidents.

"Additionally, the Attorney General a...