…Parade Student, One-Chance Robbers
Men of the Imo State command Sunday night burst a five-man armed robbery gang, which specialized in robbing shop owners at the popular Federal Polytechnic Nekede, Junction, in Owerri, the Imo State capital.
The also gunned down four members of the gang and arrested the other person when the gang members engaged security men in a gun battle.
This is even as the police paraded a student of the Imo State University, Owerri, one Ifeanyichukwu Nwafor, a native of Abukwa, Umuobom in Ideato South LGA and 19 year-old Valentine Eke for being in possession of fire arms concealed inside a note book cut to size.
Parading the lifeless bodies of the suspect and others before journalists yesterday at the state police headquarters, the Commissioner of Police, Alhaji Abdulmajid Ali, said the incident occurred about 8:30 pm Sunday after the five-man gang operating with an ash-coloured Toyota Corolla, robbed a shop at the Poly Junction.
He said the gang was intercepted by the eagle-eyed police patrol team, who was engaged in a shoot-out by the robbers.
During the ensuing gun battle, the commissioner of police added, four members of the gang sustained serious injuries but were confirmed dead when they were rushed to the Federal Medical Centre, while one of them, 23 year-old Lucky Amaechi, a native of Umuayika Ngor-Okpala council area of the state, was arrested unhurt.
The police boss disclosed also paraded a 23-year-old Chinwendu Ogu, a tricycle rider from Umueke in Ibeku LGA of Abia State, who was a member of one-chance robbers who robbed two ladies and pushed them out from a moving tricycle along Aba Road..
He said having received information about the incident, his men immediately swung into action and arrested the suspect.
Items recovered from the suspects included one English made double barrel cut to size, one locally made single barrel gun with six rounds of cartridges; one locally made pistol, with two live cartridges; and one automatic pump action with 25 live cartridges.
The police chief disclosed that most of the information that led to the arrest of the suspects was given to the police by good Nigerians, urging the people of the state to always inform the police whenever such situations arise.
