November 9, 2024

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Gunmen Kill Security Officer, Two Others In A’Ibom

2 min read

Three persons, including a security guard at the Al Madal Construction Company, were killed by gunmen suspected to be members of a secret cult at a construction site in Ikot Ibritam, Oruk Anam Local Government Area of Akwa Ibom State.
It was gathered that the security officer, identified as Easy, was killed near his duty post, while the two others were killed while trying to rescue him.
A source told this reporter that Easy was apprehended by his assailants at the construction site close to the boundary between Ukanafun and Oruk Anam council areas.
“They caught him while on duty at the road construction site and gave him several machete cuts before he slumped and died. Two of his close friends who struggled to rescue him were also killed, he added.
It was gathered that trouble started when two rival cult groups fought over money paid by the construction company for borrow pit used for sand filling of the road. Investigations revealed that the company released an undisclosed amount of money to Easy, who refused to disburse it to some members of the cult, before he was attacked.
Reacting, the Akwa Ibom State Commissioner for Works, Mr. Ephraim Inyangeyen, blamed the slow pace of the project on insecurity in the area.
He recalled that two soldiers, who were securing expatriate workers on the project, had been shot dead, while an expatriate engineer was abducted a few months earlier.
The commissioner observed that the killing of the guard and two others had heightened tension that might delay the project. “I am accusing the people of Oruk Anam that in other local government areas that we work, we do not have such security lapses. Allow the contractor to work rather than kidnapping them everyday.
“The project manager of the construction was kidnapped just as the security officer was killed penultimate Friday,” he said
The state Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Odiko Mcdon, confirmed the death of the three friends and vowed to bring perpetrators to book. “Investigation is ongoing and we will soon have a result,” he added.

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