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From Okey Sampson, Umuahia
Ugochukwu Chinyere, an orphan and unemployed graduate from Umuekwensu community, in Ohuru Isimiri, Obingwa Local Government Area of Abia State, was in his 20s when he died. He did not die as a result of hunger arising from being unemployed. No. Neither did he die as result of any ailment that his extended family, who had been bearing the responsibility of training him since his parents died at infancy, could not afford to treat.
Unfortunately, the promising young man went with the guns. He was killed by someone government paid with public funds to protect citiens’ life and property, including his.
How did it happen? On the morning of Tuesday, November 16, 2021, Chinyere had a scheduled meeting with his prospective employer in Aba. But before then, he needed to photocopy his credentials, as instructed. So, on the faithful day, he pleaded with a relation to use his motorcycle and take him to a nearby cyber cafe to photocopy the documents. His relation, whose name could not be immediately ascertained, obliged him and that happened to be a journey of no return for him. He neither made photocopies of the documents nor met the prospective employer.
According to reports, while going to the cyber cafe, he met a police checkpoint in front of the popular Metrological Complex on Obikabia-Umukalika Road in Obingwa LGA. Some policemen, led by one Inspector Yahaya, flagged them down. Chinyere’s relation obeyed and stopped. Then the policemen allegedly demanded N1,000 bribe.
And trouble started for them. Chinyere’s relation had no money on him at the time, neither did the job-seeker. However, as luck would have it, while they were being ‘detained’ at the checkpoint, another relation of the deceased who worked at the Obingwa Local Government Area headquarters arrived at the scene, and when he was told of what happened, he gave Chinyere N500 to ‘settle’ the police and continued his journey to his office.
Surprisingly, the policemen reportedly rejected the N500, insisting it must be N1,000. Chinyere, feeling he should not abandon his relation who was helping him get to where he would photocopy his documents, decided to plead on behalf of the said relation, who had all along been pleading with the policemen who turned a deaf ear.
Strangely, one of the policemen named Ukeme Etuk became exasperated over Chinyere’s pleas and warned him to steer clear of the matter. In fact, the policeman, at a point, became aggressive. The deceased, like every other right-thinking human being, reasoning that abandoning his relation who elected to assist him, at that point in time, would amount to total betrayal of trust, decided to continue to appeal for their release.
A witness said while Chinyere was still pleading, the heartless policeman from the pit of hell, fired at him from close range. The bullet pierced his back and he slumped immediately.
When the police team saw that Chinyere was seriously wounded, they attempted to run away, but sympathizers blocked the road and demanded that they should carry the young man to the hospital for treatment.
However, instead of taking Chinyere to the hospital, Inspector Yahaya and his team allegedly took him to their station at Ohuru Isimiri, dumped him there and disappeared.
“It took the intervention of a sympathetic police officer and other people at the station to get the approval of the DPO to take Chinyere to a hospital located on Azuka Road in the Ogbor Hill area of Aba,” volunteered a man who claimed to have witnessed the incident.
When friends and family members got wind of the incident and rushed to the police station, they were addressed by the DPO who told them to go to the hospital, assuring them that their brother was still alive.
Ironically, on their way to the hospital located close to another police station, Azuka Police Station, officers in the station started shooting into the crowd, as they claimed that their colleagues from Ohuru Isimiri Police Station informed them that hoodlums were coming to attack their station.
With this second bizarre action by the police, many of those who came to see Chinyere were wounded as they scampered for safety following the policemen’s uncivilized action. In fact, it was gathered that the leg of one of the young men was amputated as a result of the injuries he sustained during the misguided attack.
Expectedly, Chinyere’s killing caused protests by youths from the area, who incidentally sacked policemen and other paramilitary agencies who had converted the checkpoint to their base. The youths vowed not to spare any security agent found at the checkpoint, going forward.
Equally, a group, Vote For Justice For Late Ugochukwu Chinyere, has condemned the gruesome murder of the young graduate.
In a statement, the group said it was unfortunate that the young man would be so brutally murdered and the police authorities in the state have refused to do anything, as if it was an animal that was killed.
“Even if you kill someone’s fowl, he wouldn’t allow you have your peace, not to talk of a human being,” they said.
For the group, the police hierarchy should do something urgently to bring to book those responsible for Chinyere’s death.
An angry Aba resident who gave his name as Nnamdi said: “This is one killing too many. Some time in July last year, some policemen from Azuka station who were on illegal duty outside their area of authority killed a young man along Azikiwe Road in Aba metropolis without any cause and dumped his corpse in a gutter. Police authorities should do something about these killings.”
The state police public relations officer, Geoffrey Ogbonna, did not answer his phone when contacted.
He also did not reply text messages sent to his mobile phone.
