Why I jumped fence on sighting unknown gunmen in Imo: Police officer

A police officer who reportedly jumped fence during the early Monday morning attacks on Imo State Police Command Headquarters and a correctional facility near the government house has stated his reason for running away rather than repel the attackers.

Unknown gunmen stormed the two facilities and unleashed mayhem, a development that led to the escape of over 1,500 inmates. At the force headquarters, automobiles were set ablaze.

At the government house entrance, two security vans packed there were burnt down also.

Narrating to Vanguard how he escaped, the police officer who said he was on duty that night spoke on condition of anonymity, adding that he scaled the fence and took to his heels on sighting the armed men.

The security personnel said he could not confront the hoodlums who, according to him, were up to two hundred in number, but did not explain wether he counted them one after the other to arrive at that conclusion.

“They were over two hundred boys, with their cars singing a song of victory and when they reach the gate of our police headquarters they threw dynamite at us and the thing exploded and the vehicles caught fire especially the vehicle park,” he said.

“I jumped over the fence because they are many. When they started shooting bullets it got one of my colleagues in his hand and he fell down,” the officers whose colleagues are often brutal on armless citizens added.

While the police is yet to unravel sponsors of banditry and terrorism flourishing in the North, it speedily claimed in a statement that investigations revealed the hoodlums were members of the outlawed Indigenous People Of Biafra (IPOB).

The secessionist group whose security outfit (Eastern Security Network) reside in bushes across South-East and South-South geo-political zones immediately pushed back the police claim.

Hours after the attack, Nnamdi Kanu, leader of the secessionist group said judging by the nature of the federal government which rehabilitate, compensate and reintegrate arrested violent herdsmen and terrorists, no one should be allowed to rot away in jail.

Many have interpreted his reaction to mean he is responsible for the attack, although unconfirmed reports has it that ESN are behind increased attacks on security checkpoints and facilities in the old Eastern region.