Armed youths numbering about 50 have attacked Taabaa community in Khana Local Government Area of Rivers State, killing one person and injuring several others.
The gun-wielding youths stormed Taabaa, shooting sporadically. They drove straight to the palace of the traditional ruler, Mene Bua Baa, HRH King Kabari Nule, where they riddled the building and his car with bullets.
The attackers, who might have sought the traditional ruler, could not lay hands on him. They vented their anger on a young man they found at the palace inflicting serious injuries on him.
Reacting, the Deputy Speaker of the State House of Assembly, Leyii Kwanee, who hails from the area, condemned the attack, warning that it portends danger for the 2015 general elections.
Kwanee, a Member representing Khana Constituency II, described the incident as “very disturbing” and urged the new Commissioner of Police in the state, Mr. Dan Bature, “to see this as a test case” for which thorough and immediate investigation has to be carried out, with a view to unveiling the identities of the youths and those who bought the guns for them.
Kwanee also charged the newly sworn-in chairman of Khana Local Government Area Caretaker Committee, Mr. Gordon Tornwe, to complement the police investigation.
The State Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), Ahmed Mohammed, confirmed the incident. He added: “The hoodlums shot one man to death as they left the palace. The victim was not beheaded, as widely reported.”
He said efforts to track the attackers is on course.
