Gunmen kill 84-year-old community leader
Some yet-to-be-identified assailants have murdered an 84-year-old community leader in Umudioka village, Awka South Local Government Area of Anambra State, Ichie Michael Nwobu.
PUNCH Metro learnt that Nwobu was murdered in his bedroom in the early hours of Sunday while his family members, who had left for church when the incident happened, found his lifeless body lying on the floor in a pool of blood.
It was gathered that the development almost resulted in a breakdown of law and order by the aggrieved youths of Umudioka when they found the lifeless body but for the timely intervention of the elders of the community who managed to calm the frayed nerves.
No reason has yet to be obtained as to why the community leader was murdered, but his family members and relatives said it was the first time such a dastardly act would be recorded in the area.
As a result of the development, an emergency stakeholders meeting was summoned by the village heads and community leaders on Monday.
The Secretary of Ndichie Umudioka Obunese, Chief Joseph Nweke, who chaired the emergency meeting, held at the Umudioka Village Town Hall, confirmed to journalists that cross-examination of the deceased’s lifeless body showed that he was stabbed in his neck and chest.
Nweke also expressed disgust that such a dastardly act had taken place in the community for the first time in the history of the existence of the area.
Flanked by other community leaders, stakeholders and elders, Nweke said, “The assailants had trailed the victim to his bedroom upstairs, between 7 am and 9 am on the fateful day shortly after his wife and other family members had left for Church and stabbed him many times in his neck and chest before sneaking out of the house.
“The development has caused panic and apprehension in the community and we are therefore appealing to the appropriate security agencies to expedite action and fish out the perpetrators of the dastardly act and bring them to book.
“The assailants had just committed an abomination of the highest order, considering the age of the victim and the brutal manner with which they slashed his throat with either knives or machetes.”
Also speaking, the Chairman, Administrative Organ of the village, Chief Fidelis Nwokike, noted that it took them time to control the youths of the area from going into a rampage upon seeing what had happened.
Nwokike urged the security agencies to do a thorough job to unravel the circumstances surrounding the dastardly act, adding that they interacted with the deceased on Saturday, during a burial ceremony in the area.
Also commenting on the incident, Chairman, Okolobia (youths), Christopher Uzoh; a nephew to the deceased, Nnaemeka Emeka; and Anayo Obiakor, a stakeholder and former Chairman of Okolobia Umudioka, condemned the act and vowed that the evildoers must never go unpunished, adding that the matter had been reported at the police station.
On whether they suspect any person or persons as perpetrators, the bereaved stakeholders said they would prefer a situation where the police are allowed to carry out a discreet Investigation and unmask the actors behind the scene.
However, when contacted on the development, the state Police Public Relations Officer, SP Tochuckwu Ikenga, said the incident had not yet been brought to his knowledge, adding that he would inquire from the State Criminal Investigations Department to find out if the case had actually been reported to them.
He had yet to do that as of the time this story was filed on Monday evening.
