Protests rocked Okpanam community in Oshimili South Local Government Area of Delta State and Justice Estate along the Asaba-Benin Expressway following the killing of the community’s vigilante chairman by suspected Fulani herdsmen.
The vigilante chairman and a member of the Okpanam community vigilante were said to have been killed by the Fulani herdsmen around 9:00pm on Wednesday in a nearby bush after receiving a distress call by an unknown person.
The protesters, however, accused the governor of Delta State, Ifeanyi Okowa, of treating the Fulani herdsmen menace with kid gloves while Deltans were killed, kidnapped, maimed and raped on daily basis.
SaharaReporters quoted a member of the community’s vigilante group, who simply identified himself as Uzor, revealing that the late chairman known as Emeka Chosen got a distress call at about 9:00pm on Wednesday that someone was kidnapped by Fulani herdsmen and responded.
He said, “Emeka Chosen received a distress call at about 9:00pm Wednesday that someone had been kidnapped by the Fulani herdsmen. Emeka and two other members of our vigilante group mobilised and entered the bush so as to rescue the victim.
“On arriving the bush and unknown to Emeka, the herdsmen had laid ambush for them and fired several gun shots at him and one of the vigilante members from behind. They died immediately while the third member narrowly escaped into the bush with bullet wounds.
“The third vigilante member managed to make some emergency calls to other vigilante members that same night who mobilised to the bush but by then the Fulani herdsmen had escaped.”
The Police Public Relations Officer in Delta State, DSP Onome Onovwakpoyeya, while confirming the incident said: “The information we earlier received was that someone was kidnapped and the vigilantes in Okpanam were alerted and they pursued the kidnappers.
“But because they were banned from carrying arms, the kidnappers laid ambush for them and shot two of them dead.”
