Operatives of the Special Anti-Robbery Squad, SARS, allegedly shot dead one person while many suffered during a funeral procession in Rumuosi, Obio-Akpor local government area of Port Harcourt, the Rivers State on Monday.
It was gathered that the procession was for the burial of one Aleruchi Woko, who was allegedly killed by a military personnel during a protest over the deplorable state of Nkpolu Junction on the East-West road in Nkpolu, last November.
According to an eyewitness, the incident happened at about 9.30 am when some youths who had gone to carry the corpse of late Aleruchi Woko at a mortuary in Rumuosi, began robbing shop owners and residents with machetes.
The incident resulted into panic as residents and shop owners quickly locked up their homes and shops and scampered for safety.
“Some Policemen who witnessed the suspected hoodlums wearing black T-shirts and black trousers and clutching sharp machetes while robbing traders of their wares began shooting at them. Gun shots were heard in and around Nkpolu community. Some of Tricycle riders drove recklessly as part of the burial procession,” the eyewitnes said.
When contacted over the incident, the Community Development Committee Chairman of Nkpolu Community, Achinike Orubuogwu, said:
“The young man killed by the Police and the other one nursing bullet wounds are not indigenes of the community, but sympathizers who came to join us when went to the mortuary to carry the corpse of our brother.”
The Rivers State Police Public Relations Officer, PPRO, DSP Nnamdi Omoni, who confirmed the incident said that the Command had gathered enough intelligence report that there would be security breach by hoodlums who would cash on the burial of the late Woko and had to deploy officers and men to forestall their plans.
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