Paul Osuyi, Asaba
A bereaved house wife, Jennifer Nwaeke, has appealed to the police in Delta State to fish out the killers of her husband, Austin, at Albert camp in the suburb of Asaba, the state capital.
Gunmen suspected to be herdsmen allegedly stormed the home of the Nwaekes and shot the head of the home dead instantly. Local sources said the herdsmen were enraged by the alleged killing of one of their cows by unknown persons, and decided to revenge.
Late Austin Nwaeke, 28, a father of two was killed on April 9 at about 3am.
Narrating the incident, Mrs Jennifer Nwaeke ,said she was asleep when she heard gunshots in their compound : “I ran out of the house as my husband was lying in front of the door because of heat, but discovered that my husband had been shot,” she recalled.
Mrs. Nweake said she saw four heavily armed men and had to retreat into the house.
She stressed that she heard another volley of gunfire and thereafter she could not hear the voice of her husband again. She said the herdsmen were shouting that they killed their cow and had come for revenge.
Parents of the deceased Mr. and Mrs. Romanus Nwaeke, said they have lived in the camp for 30 years where they had all their children, and also appealed to the police to investigate the matter with a view to bringing the killers to justice.
They said they were living in fear as the suspected herdsmen promised to come back for further attacks. They noted that the police have not visited even after the incident was reported at the GRA police station, Asaba.
Founder of the camp, Mr. Albert Chukwukelu, said the attack was unexpected even though there were reports that some persons had threatened to attack the camp over the killing of a cow in another camp far away.
He said many persons in the camp have packed from their homes for fear of further attacks and appealed for security presence.
Although the public relations officer of the Delta State Police Command, DSP Onome Onowakpoyeya ,could not be reached as at the time of filing this report, sources within the command’s hierarchy confirmed the incident, saying that investigation has already begun.