Residents of Port Harcourt are protesting the killing of a mechanic, Chima Ikwunado, by the notorious Eagle Crack Police unit of the Rivers State Police Command.
The mechanic was arrested by the police unit in mid-December while testing a customer’s car and accused of being a car snatcher and an armed robber. He was subsequently tortured to death.
The police in a statement last week by its public relations officer, Nnamdi Omoni, claimed Ikwunado died of high blood sugar.
However, the family rebuffed the claims by the police, explaining that the late mechanic had no history of diabetes and was never on drugs.
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His death sparked torrents of backlash on social media during the weekend with millions of Nigerians calling for the prosecution of the police unit which tortured him to death.
The protesters who marched to the Mile 1 police station were met with force as police fire teargas canisters and live rounds to disperse them.
They are demanding the prosecution of the police team that killed the late Ikwunado.
The protest also brought traffic along Ikwerre road to a screeching halt.
