Five killed as gunmen attack Anambra communities

There was tension in Anambra Central Senatorial Zone as gunmen said to be enforcing the outlawed sit-at-home order wreaked havoc on Monday morning.

According to reports, the attacks that occurred between 8 am and 10 am in Abatete, Abagana, and Ukpo areas of the Idemili North Local Government area left no fewer than five people dead.

A source said the casualties were mainly men of the Anambra Vigilante services.

The first attack was said to have happened in Abatete town, targeting vigilant personnel attached to the town’s President-General (PG).

Three security men were shot and killed in the hail of bullets.

The President-General, whose identity could not be immediately ascertained, was critically injured and rushed to a nearby hospital.

In separate incidents, the gunmen attacked Abagana and Ukpo communities.

At the Ukpo roundabout, in Dunukofia Local Government Area of the state, one Vigilante Group member and a motorcycle rider were said to have been killed.

Terrified members of communities around Anambra Central have been sent into panic.

A voice note circulating on social media warned people in Awka not to venture outside, considering the proximity of the attacked communities to Awka, the state capital.

A member of the Abatete community stated that: “We are praying for the recovery of our PG. This senseless violence has left our community shaken.”

Another member of the Ukpo community stated on Facebook: “It was chaos. The attackers came out of nowhere, shooting indiscriminately. Shouting no Biafra, no freedom. We are still trying to process what happened.”

SP Tochukwu Ikenga, the Anambra State police spokesman, has yet to release a statement on the incident, as his telephone line remained unreachable as of the time this report was filed.