Sola Ojo, Kaduna.
Residents of Kaduna, the capital city of Kaduna State, were yesterday thrown into hours of unrest as members of Islamic Movement in Nigeria (IMN), also known as Shi’ites defied security arrangements to protest the continuous detention of their leader, Sheikh Ibrahim El-Zakzaky. The development, which led to emergency closure of shops and other business outfits along Ibrahim Taiwo Road and Ahmadu Bello Way, Kaduna, was in continuation of aggressive protests by Shi’ites, which started on Wednesday.
It was gathered that one police officer was killed when the mob attacked the patrol van he was driving on Ibrahim Taiwo Road. Eyewitnesses claimed that the police officer was caught in the protest, stabbed and stoned to death, while the assailants went away with his gun.
“They killed him here by Kano Road. He could have run as fast as he could when his colleagues were running away from the Shi’ites, who came out in their numbers. But we don’t know what went wrong and the man fell down. They stabbed and stoned him until he died and police operatives came and carried his body away,” the source said.
Police public relations officer in the state, ASP Aliyu Mukhtar, could not confirm the report at press time but he promised to visit the scene for on-the-spot assessment and issue a statement to that effect.
However, the situation has been brought under control as soldiers from 1 Division Mechanised Nigerian Army joined sister security outfits to nip the crisis in the bud.
Earlier, the planned arraignment of El-Zakzaky at Court 4, Kaduna State High Court, could not hold due to the absence of the judge, Justice Gideon Kurada, who was said to be indisposed hours to court time.
In an interview with newsmen shortly after the case was adjourned till July 11, counsel to El-Zakzaky, Femi Falana, SAN, prayed the court to release his clients and compensate them accordingly.