A motorcyclist in Abakaliki, Mr. Elias Ofoke, has been brutally killed by a suspected mad man around Udensi bridge in the early hours of Friday 18th September 2020.
The victim who hails from Agbaja Unuhu in Abakaliki Local Government Area of Ebonyi State, left his wife and six children, on that fateful morning in search of daily bread only to be forced to join his ancestors at a time that his family members needed him the most.
Eyewitness account revealed that what led to that killing was the attempted arrest of the alleged mad man by members of Neighborhood Watch Security earlier on that morning but failed as he resisted arrest which led to his torturing, after which he was abandoned to the surprise of the spectators who pleaded with the security agents not to abandon him as such could endanger the lives of others.
Consequently, the deceased Okada man who had dropped his passenger and was trying to move his bike was suddenly attacked by the mad man who was yet to recover from the shock of the attack he received from the Neighbourhood Watch Security and hit him on the head leading to the death of the motorcycle operator.
Reacting on the matter, the Divisional Police Officer (DPO) Kpirikpiri Division, SP Chris Anyanwu who confirmed the incident advised members of Okada Union to still nose for background information even as the police was still on top of the situation in order to do justice to the matter.
In an interview, the State Chairman, Motorcycle Transport Union Ebonyi State Chapter, Comrade Paulinus Atam, who frowned at the tragic incident explained that the union has never recorded such case since his emergence as the chairman, and called on the government to fish out mad men in Abakaliki metropolis in order to forestall such occurrence in the future, while consoling with the bereaved family and the entire members of the union, adding that the union was already on the forefront of the tragic event.
Moreover, the State Commissioner for Internal Security and Border Peace, Chief Stanley Okoro Emegha, on phone call said that he has been notified of the tragedy that he had already called on the police to wade into the matter and ensure that the culprit be brought to book.
The Commissioner also doubted the possibility of the alleged actions of the Neighbourhood Watch Security on the mad man adding that the security outfit who have being working for the safety of the people in the state could not unleash attack on a mad person and abandon such a person to endanger the lives of others on the streets.
Also speaking, a nephew to the deceased, Mr. Opoke Innocent who identified his Late uncle as a married man with six children, called on the state government to come to the aid of the family members of the deceased as his demise has created a very big vacuum which needed the intervention of both the state government and the Okada Union for the survival of the bereaved family.
Meanwhile, the corpse of the victim was later deposited to the FETHA 1 mortuary, Abakaliki while the wounded mad man was taken to the police clinic for medical attention before proceeding with the matter.
