Gunmen alleged to be operatives of the disbanded Ebubeagu Security Outfit on Monday reportedly attacked Awomamma community in Oru-West Local Government Area of Imo state, killing one person.
It was gathered that the 34-year-old man whose identity could not be ascertained at the press time was shot by the gunmen who invaded the community in a Toyota Sienna vehicle.
In a viral video, the deceased is seen being carried on a wheelbarrow around the community, while the elders of the community said they and their children had done nothing wrong to deserve the tragedy.
Speaking in Igbo language, one of the elders said, “God, what have we done to deserve this? This boy lying dead here is neither a thief nor an armed robber. He does not backbite or look for trouble. In fact, our children are not armed robbers.
“He was only going to buy bread from the next store when he was attacked by gunmen who shot him dead. What wrong has this young boy committed?”
Someone also said, “What have our young men done? We are gathered here so that the whole world and Nigeria can hear our voices.
“This young man did not have an accident. Operatives of Ebubeagu (banned) came to our community and today, being 25 of March, 2024, this young man went to buy bread he would use to drink tea this morning and Ebubeagu operatives shot him down.
“What have we done? We are calling for urgent help in this community. Please, ask Ebubeagu what they want us to do in this community.
“This is not the first nor the second time our community is being attacked. What have they seen in our community that they wouldn’t want us to rest?
“We are calling on the government to come to our rescue because our youths are being killed every day.”
However, efforts made by the media to get more details about the incident and get the reaction of the police failed as the Imo State Police Public Relations Officer, Henry Okoye, neither answered calls made to his phone nor replied to a text message sent to him.
