Security operatives of the Police and Ebubeagu Security Network (ESN) on Wednesday engaged in a gun duel at the Imo state Secretariat, which resulted in a stampede, and left scores injured.
Sources told LEADERSHIP that the stampede occurred as a result of workers scampering to safety during the shooting between the security operatives.
The source who pleaded anonymity said “an operative of the Ebubeagu group was being bullied by a group of policemen near the state’s Attorney General’s office. Apparently he smartly notified his colleagues.
“Almost immediately, other operatives of Ebubeagu appeared from nowhere and engaged the policemen in a gun battle. They started shooting sporadically in the air, but, nobody was shot.
“It was in a bid to avoid sustaining gunshots by the workers that a stampede resulted at the secretariat that led to some sustaining various degrees of injuries”, the source said.
According to him, the policemen had accused the Ebubeagu operative of overstepping his boundaries and usurping the job of the police command. It was in bid to address the issue that the fracas ensued.
However, in a swift reaction, the spokesperson for Governor Hope Uzodimma, Oguwike Nwachuku in a statement denied allegations of attack by unknown gunmen at the state secretariat.
Nwachuku said rather it was a case of Police operatives trailing a suspect in a case in order to effect his arrest in an alleged crime when some gunshots were released in the air.
He said “There was no such incident involving unknown gunmen as it is currently being peddled at some quarters. It was an attempt to effect the person’s arrest that the police fired warning shots at the Secretariat.
“Members of the public are therefore advised to ignore any information linking the incident to unknown gunmen as there was nothing of such”, Nwachuku said.
