Gunmen Raid Shop, Kill 52 Years Old Man In Umuahia Abia State

UNKNOWN gunmen operating in a tricycle, popularly known as Keke Napep last Saturday at about 7pm shot dead a 52-year old trader, Obiora Ibe, in his shop on Club Road Umuahia.

The gunmen were also said to have collected Ibe’s, undisclosed amount of money, being the sales of the day, his phone and that of his wife, after shooting him.

The victim, Obiorah Ibe was said to have told his wife, Mrs. Azuka Ibe that they should close and go home, shortly before the incident, as there were no more customers for the day.

According to Mrs. Ibe, while they were packing, a young boy that she put his age at less than twenty years entered their shop, pretending to have come to buy something only for him to pull out a steel gun and ordered her to give him the money and phone, which she willing did.

Mrs. Ibe narrated that it was at that point that her husband who was coming out from the shop saw the boy going away with the apron that was containing money and phone and shouted.

She said that while the person with the apron that contained the money quietly walked into the Keke Napep that was waiting in front of the shop, another member of the gang standing by the side shot her husband on the neck and head, before they zoomed off in the Keke Napep.

An eye witness, who is a neighbour to the Ibes, Mr. Peter Chinweokwu said that he was inside his store when he saw somebody pushing his son and wife inside the store, telling them to go inside the store immediately.

“I didn’t know that they were armed robbers, so I asked him, Oga what is it now; he said that I should give him the money I sold for the day. I told him that I didn’t have any money, that I had not sold anything. The next minute, he closed the burglary against us while we were still inside the store and went into my neighbour’s shop.

“We were inside that place when I heard the sound of a gun. I peeped and saw that somebody was entering inside the Keke with one steel gun. When I came out, I saw that they had shot my neighbour and I rushed him to hospital but when we got to the hospital, the doctor confirmed him dead”.

The Abia Police Command confirmed the incident. According to the PPRO, DSP Udeviote Onyeke Ezekiel, “it was a shock and one of the unfortunate incidents in the state”.

The PPRO said the identity of the perpetuators was yet known as no arrest has been made. He however, said that Command has dispatched men from its intelligent unit to unravel those behind the killing.

‪‎Source‬: Vanguard