From Stanley Uzoaru, Owerri
Gunmen suspected to be herdsmen killed a truck driver and hijacked an 18-seater bus with passengers on the Aba-Owerri Road in Imo State on Tuesday, May 6, causing gridlock and stranding commuters.
An eyewitness reported, “They are many they killed a truck driver and took over 18 passengers into the bush with them, they came out from the bush and started shooting sporadically causing many vehicles traveling on the road to stop.”
In a separate incident on May 8, 2025, hoodlums razed over 20 vehicles, including trucks and motorcycles, on the Okigwe-Owerri Highway. Imo State Police spokesperson Henry Okoye confirmed both incidents, attributing the Okigwe attack to suspected members of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) and its Eastern Security Network (ESN).
He stated, “The Imo State Police Command, working in synergy with the Military, Department of State Services (DSS), and other sister security agencies, has launched a coordinated manhunt for criminal elements suspected to be members of the proscribed IPOB/ESN… They shot sporadically, causing panic and chaos, and set over twenty vehicles including trucks and motorcycles ablaze.”
Commissioner of Police Aboki Danjuma led a joint tactical team to the Okigwe scene, initiating a search operation in nearby forests. Okoye noted, “It’s an old story an incident that happened two days ago and we have launched a manhunt to apprehend those behind the act.”
He urged residents to provide information to aid the investigation.