[b]Robbers terrorise Imo, kill 10
From Amby Uneze in Owerri, 04.24.2010
Sunday, April 25, 2010

Imo State recorded yet another unprecedented high profile robbery attack on Thursday as armed robbers ran through most of the banks operating from Orlu through Anara in Isiala Mbano Local Government to Okigwe, robbing and killing innocent people.
 

As the dare-devil men were busy robbing the banks, they also engaged the police and army, and at the last count, ten people comprising four policemen, two military personnel and about four civilians were killed.

The vicious onslaught by the hoodlums dressed in mobile police uniform started in Ihiala in Anambra State where they were said to have shot policemen on sight at checkpoints on their way to Imo State.


Having shot and killed two policemen at a checkpoint around St Joseph Catholic Church in Orlu, leaving two others who had rolled under a stationary vehicle with multiple bullet wounds for dead, the gunmen proceeded to Owerri Nkwoji in Nkwerre council area where they were said to have attacked a bank, killing two policemen and a civilian who lived in the building opposite the bank.


From Nkwerre, the gunmen headed for Anara in Isiala Mbano council area of the state where what would have been an ambush by the police, according to a source, turned sour.

The source confided in THISDAY that Police had planned to confront the hoodlums at Anara but some how the gunmen were at the location before the police perfected their plans.


The source said that the hoodlums were already waiting around the area where the Operation Festival’s Joint Police and Military patrol outfit was often stationed, while police were bringing a tipper lorry to barricade the road.

While the two policemen were coming down from the tipper, the gunmen opened fire killing them instantly.


On their way out of the state, the robbers passed through the front of the state police command headquarters and the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency and shot repeatedly at their buildings.

When THISDAY visited the Imo State University Teaching Hospital, Orlu where most of the casualties from Orlu area were taken to, the emergency unit of the hospital was literally besieged by concerned residents of the state who had come to sympathize with the victims and others who had come to ascertain that none of their loved ones were affected in the vicious attack. 


The Army Public Relations Officer, Lt. Adamu Ngulde maintained that as at news time, he was not sure of the number of casualties the army recorded, saying they were still receiving reports and assessing the situation in all the locations the attacks occurred. A woman, who was apparently being treated for shock at IMSUTH, narrated how a female passenger sitting next to her in a bus was killed by a stray bullet.


She also lamented the fact that the same band of gunmen could run through two states inflicting pain and death in several hours without any formidable challenge from security agencies operating in both states.

The Chief Medical Director of IMSUTH, Dr Alex Chukwulebe stated that over 19 casualties were brought into the emergency unit of the hospital among the 19 were two policemen who were brought in dead and another two civilians who were also brought in dead.

These were casualties from Orlu alone. The injured according to the CMD suffered different degrees of organ injuries with two of them being subjected to emergency surgeries to save their lives.

Reacting to the incident, the Imo State Police Public Relations Officer, ASP Linus Nwaiwu however differed on the impression that the robbers had a joy-ride through the state.


He insisted that the Police confronted them at different points after the initial surprise attacks.

He agreed that the police sustained serious casualties but stressed that the hoodlums also had their own casualties with serious gunshot wounds.  “It is only a matter of time. We will definitely catch up with them”, he said.

Consequently, the Anti Terrorism Squad of the Nigerian Police Force recently drafted to the South-East states, most of whom have been operating in the state capital of Owerri alone, were yesterday deployed to all the zones of the state in a bid to smoke out the hoodlums.

Along the Orlu-Owerri road, it was no longer business as usual at the checkpoints as the officers were aggressively searching boots of vehicles plying the road in a no-nonsense manner. [/b]

http://nigeriaworld.com/cgi-bin/axs/ax.pl?http://odili.net/news/source/2010/apr/25/211.html

may God rest everyone soul.whilst not wishing to be seen as condoning such reckless inhumane act of wickedness of man again his fellow men, folks i regret to say that our government has a lot to answer for this mayhem.Unless and until they begin to see the effect of their various blatant display of ill gotten wealth and culture of ostentatious living and impunity, we will never be safe on our streets and homes. I mean how can anyone explain that someone as poor as me will over night have an aircraft, live in high security house and travel in convoy of armoured vehicles and mopol because someone has made me a politician because i was possibly his henchman while many smart intelligent young men and women who have masters degrees etc have been looking for work without any success or hope. How can anyone convince them that it is good to be good? If they cannot be politicians and become rich over night they may perhaps become Hench men, 419ners or armed robbers. therefore a word of advice for our politicians, address the root causes of crime in Nigeria by creating employment opportunities for our young people and giving them hope in the future. we all have needs

I