Attempt To Burn Down Police Station Averted

Policemen from the Aba Area Command have averted a move by members of the Obinwanne Social Club of Nigeria to burn Eziama Police Division located along Ikot Ekpene road in the commercial city.

The enraged club members who stormed the Division in buses were protesting the death of their member, Friday Dimofor as a result of injuries sustained from a shot by Corporal Ebenezer Paul attached to the Division.

Pointblanknews.com gathered that Corporal Paul in company of Constables Henry Chukwumerije and Otuu James invaded No 18 Obiora road where the club members were having their meeting and started shooting into the air, leading to some of them taking to their heels.

According to a member of the club who did not want his name on print, 'It was around 5pm; the policemen came to the meeting and started shooting into the air. Everybody, including shop owners ran away, they shot Friday on the back. We don't know why they did this. Our club is registered with the local government. We did not do anything against the law neither was Friday a criminal.  If the police had anything against anybody or the club, why did they not arrest the person peacefully?

'The police team took him to the St. Anthony's Hospital, but we heard the Hospital demanded a police report since it was a bullet wound. But before they could do anything, the boy died.'

The club members who drove around town finally converged at the Eziama Division chanting war songs and  made moves to burn the latter until a detachment of Policemen from the Aba Area Command stormed the area and pleaded with them to disperse, assuring that the culprit would be brought to book.

A police source told Pointblanknews.com that the team from the Eziama Division was wrong to have gone to another Division and in the process committed murder. According to him, the area where the incident took place is under the jurisdiction of Ndiegoro Division; a stone throw away from the scene of the incident.

'It is unfortunate that the team left where they were deployed to and embarked on an illegal duty. Ebenezer Paul has not been seen since that day.'

Efforts to contact the Police Public Relations Officer(PPRO), Abia state Command, Geoffrey Ogbonna, did not yield fruit as his mobile number were unavailable as at the time of filing this report.