Police confirm renewed attack on Ebonyi community

The Ebonyi Police Command has confirmed a renewed attack on the Azuoffia-Okpuitumo community of Abakaliki Local Government Area by suspected invaders from neigbouring Ojuitim Community of Cross River.

DSP Jude Madu, the Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO) of the command, said this on Tuesday while speaking with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN).

Madu, however, said that the casualty figures had not been ascertained.

According to him, the Commissioner of Police, Titus Lamorde, had deployed officers to the affected community and directed that they remained in the area till normalcy was restored.

“We have not ascertained the casualty figures but we will do so on completion of investigation after normalcy has been restored in the area,” he said.

A doctor at the Federal Teaching Hospital Abakaliki (FETHA) where the victims were admitted, Dr Lawrence Nwangele, said that the victims were brought to the hospital around 4 p.m. on Monday.

“The first batch of seven victims was brought as one died on the way to the hospital while another batch of seven victims was later brought to the hospital.

“The victims sustained severe gunshots and machete wounds and are now in stable condition after we overcame initial constraints in handling their cases,” Nwangele said.

One of the victims, Mr Peter Ochi, said the invaders attacked them with sophisticated weapons such as AK-47 rifles and machetes as they
were cultivating on their farms at about 2 p.m. on Monday.

“They confronted us and started destroying our crops and when we demanded for explanation, they unleashed their weapons on us,” Ochi said.

He said that two persons were killed in the process while many were wounded.

Mr Sunday Uguru, another victim said that he could only remember the names of Reggae Igboke and Linus Ugoru as those killed, among several
others that were killed by the invaders.

“The Ojuitum indegenes did not allow us to cultivate on the disputed land, preferring to leave it fallow to the consternation of our people,” Uguru said.