Four policemen have been reportedly killed by gunmen at a checkpoint opposite a gas station on the Hilltop/Egugwu Agbaja/Nwofe Road in Izzi Local Government Area of Ebonyi State. This is the second time in four months that policemen were killed at the checkpoint. The first incident occurred November last year when some hoodlums attacked policemen on duty at the checkpoint and killed three of them.
Some residents of the area had sustained varying degrees of injury during the attack while security was beefed up after the incident with motorists and other road users subjected to thorough search by a special police team deployed to the area.
But at about 5:30am on Friday, hoodlums attacked the checkpoint again, leaving some policemen and prostitutes, otherwise called hook-up girls, dead. The actual number of victims of the attack was not ascertained as different casualty figures were being circulated. While some sources living in the area said five policemen and two hook-up girls died in the incident, other sources told Saturday Sun that six policemen and two hook up girls were killed.
“Yes, gunmen attacked the police checkpoint in our area at Hilltop/Nwofe Road. Five policemen and two hook up girls were shot dead by the gunmen. The two hook-up girls were returning from their night activities when the incident occurred and it’s like they ran into the gunmen.
“It was policemen that evacuated the bodies of those that were killed. If you go to the scene of the attack, you will see blood everywhere.
“Gunmen have been terrorizing this area. This was why security was beefed up and it is a road that leads to Governor Francis Nwifuru’s place, Nwofe,” a resident who pleaded anonymity stated.
Acting Police Public Relations Officer in the state, DSP Joshua Ukandu did not pick several calls by our correspondent over the incident. But it was gathered that the State Commissioner of Police, Augustina Ogbodo has visited the scene of the incident.