A landlord in the Oyigbo Local Government Area of Rivers State, who identified himself only as Emmanuel, has claimed that over 20 persons were killed by soldiers deployed to restore normalcy in the area after suspected members of the Indigenous People of Biafra attacked three police stations.
Emmanuel alleged that the soldiers in commando style broke into houses to pick residents, adding that most of those arrested had not been seen by their loved ones.
He said, “A pregnant woman died of shock after continuous gunshots. The woman fainted and there was no way to take her to hospital. Some other persons were also hit by stray bullets and died at home because hospitals were closed.
“There are many innocent souls that have lost their lives in Oyigbo. More than 20 persons have been killed. Many people are crying looking for their loved ones.
In Iriebe where my in-law lives, the army marched from house-to-house breaking into houses looking for stolen guns. If they enter your house and discover two or three boys inside, they would beat them up and tie them up saying they are IPOB members. They (soldiers) even killed some of them.”
The Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Wike, had on October 21, 2020 imposed a 24-hour curfew and deployed soldiers and other security agents to enforce it.
The State Security Council on Wednesday relaxed the 24-hour curfew in Oyigbo as life was gradually returning to normal.
But the spokesman for the 6 Division of the Nigerian Army, Port Harcourt, Major Charles Ekeocha, said the claims against the Army were false, saying its operation in Oyigbo was professional and targeted only at “criminals who killed security operatives and stole their rifles.”
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