Prison officials allegedly assault lawyer, threaten to shoot him

An Ebonyi-based lawyer, Ekigbo Samson, has alleged that armed officials of Abakaliki Correctional Service Centre physically assaulted him in Abakaliki, causing him ear injuries.

According to medical diagnoses, Mr Samson sustained ear trauma with otitis media after the alleged attack by the prison officials.

The diagnosis is contained in a police medical report from the Nigeria Police Medical Department, police headquarters, Abakaliki.

Uche Okette, a deputy superintendent of police, signed the medical report.

The report stated that the lawyer has a history of slapping at his right ear, which caused him pain and trauma.

In the report, Mr Okette referred the lawyer to Alex Ekwueme Federal University Teaching Hospital, Abakaliki, for further treatment after receiving first aid.

Mr Samson, in a petition by his lawyers to the Commissioner of Police in Ebonyi state, Adaku Uche-Anya, alleged that four armed officials of the Abakaliki Correctional Service Centre attacked him on Tuesday evening.

“On the 26th day of November 2024 at about 1400 hours, our client while on transit around filing station, Abakaliki-Enugu Expressway, was collided into by a tricycle, the petition signed by his lawyers, J. Elom and Kingsley Ogodo, narrated.

“That upon the occurrence of this incident, our client parked across Hariz filing station and walked into the filing station to sort out how to fix his vehicle, discharging the tricycle driver.

“That while waiting outside for his mechanic, our client was just walking across the filing station when the suspects at about 1427 hours drove in a Green Hiace Hummer Toyota bus of the Abakaliki Medium Correctional Centre and attempted to collide into our client.

“That our client merely asked the driver of Hiace Hummer Toyota bus whether he knows what he is doing and moved on, only for Mr Pius Nwode to alight from the bus with his arm/gun together with one tall dark officer and aggressively walked to our client and slapped him hard on his right ear, cocked his gun, pointed at our client and retorted aggressively thus, “I will waste you here, and nothing will happen.

“That upon hearing this statement with a cocked gun pointed at him, our client was in grave fear for his life as he was uncertain as to the next line of action the suspects will take,” the petition said.

When contacted, the spokesperson of the Abakaliki Medium Correctional Centre, Nneka Iyasei, declined to comment, saying she had not received a report of the indent.