By Ezeakukwu Emmanuel Nsoedo
We ran into what seemed to be an impromptu roadblock prohibiting vehicular movement between Nkpor and Nnobi. We were returning from Onitsha, and it was getting late (6.20 pm) in the day. The road is so strategic that one can commence their trip to any part of Nigeria and reaches their destination without much hassle.
There were over ten heavily armed policemen busy, however, it was impossible to understand what they were up to, or what generated the fuss.
I approached two police officers who stood apart from the others and asked them to tell me why they prohibited the free movement of vehicles.
One of the officers told me that somebody was killed as a result of gunshots. So, where is the body?” I asked him. He pointed to the Mitsubishi bus going towards the direction of Nnobi. If the corpse had been removed, what else are the officers still doing there? “Who owns the vehicle on the other side of the road?” I queried.
The officer said that they still had work to do and that the vehicle was abandoned. While they made away with another one, they snatched on that spot.
The crowd stood a distance from them. Most of the people there were young, and many witnessed the incident. Contrary to my assumption, it was a young lady that they killed after they used her blouse to blindfold her before executing her.
The unknown gunmen used the gray Lexus jeep to block the two men and the deceased female, with a burst of gunshots in all directions. The two men with the female occupant jumped out and ran towards the direction of Nkpor, using the stores to shield themselves.
Both men sustained gunshot injuries on their legs. Perhaps, frustrated by the escape of the two men, the unknown gunmen dragged the lady to the other side of the road while she was blindfolded and killed.
They snatched a Toyota Highlander and took the vehicle’s occupants with them, and they abandoned the Lexus jeep there. The license plate on the Lexus jeep is Lagos plate number LSR-358HH.
The eyewitnesses said that the gunmen kept firing their guns nonstop for over ten minutes.
The eyewitnesses confirmed that the two young men traveling with the deceased lady were helped to the hospital by some community members.
Meanwhile, at least three members of the community sustained serious gunshot injuries, and they took the Crowne hospital nearby.
One of the officers informed me that they would tow the jeep to their station.