Warriors purportedly joined to the 82 Division of the RCCG pastor killed by kidnappers, seven churchgoers saved, CAN mournsNigerian Armed force have been blamed for shooting an individual from the State Neighborhood Carefulness Watch, Ebuka Oke, and a yet-to-be-distinguished lady dead along the ninth Mile-Squeeze Ezeagu Street in Enugu State.
gathered that on Thursday, June 29, 2023, armed robbers were robbing motorists of their valuables along the highway, leaving some victims hospitalized.
The burglary activity was said to have happened a day after business drivers employing the Enugu-Ugwuogo-Creations Nsukka Street held a show to communicate their complaints against the increasing pace of grabbing procedure on the expressways in the state.
While describing the events that resulted in the deaths of the two victims, Emeka Anigbo, the assistant chief security officer of the vigilance group, stated that he and other members of the group were celebrating with their colleagues who were being introduced to the group when they received a distress call that armed robbers were on the loose on the highway.
He said, “On getting the call, we quickly drove out with the end goal of standing up to the criminal components and informed the Divisional Cop of the ninth Mile Division that covers the area.
“While on our way, we experienced gridlock occasioned by the blockage of the street and couldn’t get to the scene with our vehicle. We chose to leave the vehicle along the street and began moving towards the spot.
“On intently moving toward the scene, we located three equipped warriors without vehicles and on locating us, they yelled stop there. I yelled that we were members of the State Neighborhood Vigilance Watch as we obeyed. From there on, they requested that we continue to come.”
Making sense of further, Anigbo said he and his individuals were moving towards the troopers when they supposedly begun taking shots at them, adding that Oke and his partner’s better half were killed all the while.
“Surprisingly, on approaching, the soldiers from the 82 Division of the Nigerian Army started firing at us,” he stated. Even though they saw us dressed in our official uniform, they shot and killed Ebuka Oke.
“They similarly shot the spouse of one of the people we were initiating. They likewise shot me and keeping in mind that I was on the ground, one of the warriors, notwithstanding seeing my ID card and uniform, shot my shoulder. In point of fact, the prompt arrival of 9th Mile police officers saved my life.
Anigbo, while squirming excruciatingly in the emergency clinic said the assault was ridiculous, adding that the fighters would have marked them individuals from the Native Nation of Biafra/Eastern Security Organization or ruffians notwithstanding the convenient mediation of the cops who distinguished them as individuals from the watchfulness bunch.
Our correspondent learned that some of the injured victims had been admitted to the hospital’s intensive care unit, so attempts to speak with them were unsuccessful.
When contacted, Lieutenant Colonel Unuakhalu, Deputy Director of Army Public Relations for the 82 Division of the Nigerian Army, stated that the troops received a distress call that some criminals were operating along the Eke Road and rushed to the scene. He also stated that the criminals started shooting when they saw the soldiers, but they were defeated.
He said the boldness of the fighters prompted the capture of one of the criminals and the recuperation of two weapons and live projectiles, adding that it was throughout the trading of gunfire between the soldiers and the gangsters that a wanderer slug hit the departed lady who was hurried to the medical clinic and was affirmed dead.
Unuakhalu said, “Thus, there is no bit of legitimacy in the data being hawked around that it was fighters that killed the departed (casualties). After receiving a distress call, our men rushed to the scene to salvage the situation.
“It is unfortunate that the woman passed away; if she had not, she would have been in the best position to accurately describe what transpired. In the mean time, the division will complete a legitimate examination on the occurrence to disentangle what really happened.”
Endeavors to get the state Police Advertising Official, Daniel Ndukwe, for a response demonstrated unsuccessful as calls made to his versatile number rang out.
He presently couldn’t seem to answer an instant message shipped off his number as of the time this report was recorded.