Again, gunmen kill police inspector, three others in South-east

Gunmen have killed a police inspector in Abia State, South-east Nigeria.

The hoodlums also killed three civilians during the attack which occurred on Sunday along Ngwa Road in Aba, commercial hub of the state.

The police spokesperson in Abia State, Maureen Chinaka, disclosed this in a statement on Sunday.

Ms Chinaka, an assistant superintendent of police, identified the inspector as Shehu Oyibo.

The police spokesperson said the slain inspector was attached to the state’s Rapid Response Squad.

How the attack happened

Ms Chinaka said the late Oyibo and other police operatives were conducting a routine patrol in the area on Sunday when the gunmen attacked them at about 11:28 a.m.

The spokesperson said the hoodlums, who were operating in an ash-coloured Sienna vehicle, suddenly opened fire on the operatives.

She said operatives repelled the attack, preventing what could have been a “deadlier” outcome.

“However, during the exchange of gunfire, two of the assailants were neutralised, while others escaped with various degrees of bullet injuries,” she said.

Ms Chinaka added that Mr Oyibo was killed during the shootout.

The police spokesperson said bodies of the three civilians who were killed by the hoodlums during the attack had been deposited in the morgue.

She identified the deceased civilians as Chika Godliveth and 32-year-old Onyenaturuchi Jonah — both males and indigenes of the state.

Mr Chinaka also gave the name of the third deceased civilian as Eniobong Godsgift Clement, 18, a female from Akwa Ibom State.

She said the police had begun an investigation to track down the fleeing gunmen.

The spokesperson urged residents of Abia State to go about their lawful businesses without fear as security agencies “have been deployed to strategic locations in the state to ensure the protection of lives and property.”

She enjoined the residents to report to the police any suspicious movement or individuals seen with bullet injuries around their neighbourhood.

Worsening insecurity

Like other states in Nigeria’s South-east, security has deteriorated in Abia State with frequent attacks by armed persons.

The attacks often target security agencies, government officials and facilities.

The latest attack occurred barely a month after gunmen killed two police operatives at a checkpoint in Aba.

Governor Alex Otti of Abia State would later visit the families of the slain operatives where he vowed to stop attacks against security agencies in the state.

Gunmen, on 30 May, killed five soldiers in the state at a military checkpoint near Aba.

The Nigerian government has accused the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) of being responsible for the deadly attacks in the region. But the group has repeatedly denied their involvement in the attacks.

IPOB is a group leading agitation for an independent state of Biafra which it wants carved out from the south-east and some parts of the south-south Nigeria.