Paul Osuyi, Asaba
GUNMEN, suspected to be herdsmen, have reportedly shot three people dead in the university town of Abraka, in Ethiope East Local Government Area of Delta State.
Local sources said the killings occurred at Reserve Road, on Tuesday evening, when two of the victims, suspected to be a mother and her daughter, were waylaid on their way from the farm by the gun-wielding men.
One of the victims, simply identified as Kennedy Ukuwanorvwe, 27, had earlier be killed before the assailants laid ambush for the female victims at Abacha Camp.
Local sources said Abacha camp, a farming area, is predominantly cultivated by indigenes of both Abraka in Ethiope East and Obiaruku, in Ukwuani council area of the state.
The male victim was identified as a native of Obiaruku, and his corpse has been taken home by relatives, while the others were deposited at a morgue in the area.
Commissioner of Police, Adeyinka Adeleke, who confirmed the killings on phone to Daily Sun, in Asaba, yesterday, said investigation was ongoing to unravel the cause of deaths.
Adeleke said it was not clear yet if the deceased were victims of herdsmen or marauding armed robbers, adding that their corpses were recovered, while detectives were presently combing the bushes for clues.
Abraka and its environs have been flash points of criminal activities of herdsmen for almost a decade.