Emmanuel Adeyemi,Lokoja
Two passengers plying through Okene-Lokoja highway, was on Saturday, shot dead by armed robbers while a police man was injured on the leg
The incident occured around 6pm in Osara, between Itakpe and the Kabba Junction, leading drivers to abandon their vehicles, and travellers were left stranded on the road.
It was gathered that the two victims that lost their lives were siblings, of Ebira extraction, who were resident in Katsina State. They were home on visit and were on their way back to their station.
One of the travellers said that she arrived her Lokoja residence in the early hours of Sunday.
The woman, who spoke under the condition of anonymity, said boarded from Lagos, where she had been since the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic lockdown, adding that they encountered heavy vehicular traffic between Berger, in Lagos and Ibadan in Oyo State.
She added that their situation was further compounded when after the attack, the vehicle in which they were travelling developed mechanical fault.
According to her: “We boarded our vehicle from Lagos around 7am, but experienced heavy ‘go-slow,’ and not until till after Ibadan, were we totally free from it.
“We got to Osara after 6pm. Our driver was following closely behind the vehicle that was attacked. Somewhere, the driver had to stop for a passenger who was pressed, to urinate, after which we saw oncoming motors flagging us to stop; that there was a robbery operation ahead. People ran helter skelter, but the residents will not allow us to take refuge in their houses. They said that if they did, the robbers will search of us out one by one.
“After quite a while, other vehicles continued on their journey, but ours will not start. The driver made contacts and a motor mechanic came over from the Kabba Junction to attend to it.
“When we got to the point of the attack, we heard that two brothers were shot and killed, while a policeman at the nearby checkpoint was shot in the leg. We heard that their remains were later evacuated and deposited at the State Specialist Hospital in Lokoja.”
Efforts made to confirm the incident from the Kogi State Police Command proved abortive, as the Kogi State Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), William Aya, promised to respond to a message sent to him, but was yet to as at the time of filing this report.
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