•Nkechi Eze Photo:Sun News Publishing

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As the world prepares to celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ, the Uburu community in Ohaozara Local Government Area of Ebonyi State, is wallowing in grief, sorrow and tears.
On Wednesday, December 10, 2008, the community, renowned for salt production, had a taste of war in peace time.

That day, a vicious gang of six armed robbers raided a first generation bank (name withheld) located on the outskirts of the community at about 11.00am. The gang did not only come to steal but also to kill and destroy. Eight people were killed and several others injured, as the robbers went on a shooting free.
The attack was the second in two years. The first attack was in 2006, which claimed six lives.

Saturday Sun gathered that when the gang attacked on December 10, it could not gain access to the bank’s vault. The robbers, armed with AK47 and other sophisticated weapons, ran amok, hence they opened fire on villagers in the heart of the community. In the process, they killed eight people.
The case of one of the victims, Miss Nkechi Eze, a 20-year- old student of College of Education, Ikwo, was pathetic. The robbers blew off her head. She was said to be preparing for her teaching practice before she was wasted. Another man is feared to have also died during the attack. The robbers also killed a policeman at Uduma, while fleeing.

Many other people also sustained gunshot injuries in the rage of the bandits. They include Mr. Ugwu, a staffer of the bank from Nsukka, Enugu State and Mrs. Chuku Ogar, an indigene. While Ugwu’s abdomen was pumped with bullets, Ogar was shot in the leg. Some of the victims are said to be currently receiving treatment at the Ebonyi State University Teaching Hospital, Abakaliki.

Family sources disclosed that when Nkechi’s mother beheld the gory sight of her daughter’s shattered head, she passed out and had to be revived. However, her blood pressure instantly rose to an alarming level. She had to be taken to Warri, Delta State by relations for adequate medical care.
One of the community leaders, who pleaded anonymity for security reasons, told Saturday Sun that the bandits held them hostage for hours as they played deadly music with their guns. According to him, the community is still in debilitating shock even as many, particularly the aged ones, have developed one health problem or another.

He said: “It was like a war situation; a situation that is better imagined than experienced. We cannot forget it in a hurry. Indeed, it was a sad moment, a very dark day. Around 11.00am that day, Wednesday, December 10, 2008, a six-man gang of robbers armed to the teeth stormed the bank. When they gained entry into the bank, they started looking for the manager because they wanted the keys to the vault. Somehow, the bank manager escaped but they descended on another staffer who they mistook for the manager. They beat him blue and black, and eventually shot him when he couldn’t produce the keys.

“Since the mission of breaking into the vault had failed, they just packed the money on the counter. Of course, the robbers did not spare the unlucky customers inside the bank at the time. One of the customers was from the neighbouring community. They dealt with him severely, took his money and made away with his motorcycle. Perhaps, because they did not steal the kind of money they envisaged, they decided to vent their anger on the hapless community. The robbers went about shooting sporadically and looting mindlessly in broad daylight. From the sound of their weapon and the ease with which they dispensed bullets, it was obvious they were prepared.

“They came in a Mercedes Benz 190 car. But as they were leaving the bank, they took with them the station wagon belonging to the auditor. However, as they were operating, some courageous youths of the land went and buried nails on the exit route. So, when they ran through the nails, the tyres of the station wagon went flat and they abandoned it there. Unfortunately, the tyres of the Mercedes Benz 190 were not affected; perhaps it had tubeless tyres.”

On how the trainee teacher met her untimely end, the chief said that the young lady, who just returned to observe the last public holiday with her family, was actually in her mother’s shop at the area known as Isieke when the rain of bullets started. Perhaps, out of fear, he noted, she poked her head out of the door only for the rampaging robbers to pump hot leads into her, spilling her brains. And the girl died with her dream of becoming a teacher.

Lamenting about the porous security situation of the area, the community leader said: “The armed robbers came in through the Uburu-Npu road and escaped through the same route because there is virtually no police presence there even though it is the border between Ebonyi and Enugu states. It is high time something was done because right now the people are at the mercy of the bandits, who strike at will and stroll away unchallenged,” he said.
To buttress his position, he disclosed that less than two years ago, robbers stormed the community leaving a trail of sorrow, blood and tears. In the attack, people were killed and some seriously injured. Those killed include Eze Nwujor and Onu Chukumboke from Umuchima village. Among the injured was Unegwu Akpa from Amaenu.

According to our source, “during that operation, which lasted several hours, the robbers came to the bank at night with gas cylinders and other welding tools with which they attempted to break into the vault. Our kinsmen were also maimed before they left. And while leaving, they shouted that they will surely return, but not in the night again. Now, that promise has been fulfilled, so to say’.
He averred that due to the spate of armed robbery in the area, the only bank in the area had threatened to close shop but were persuaded by some prominent figures to shelve the plan. He contended that the latest siege is a grim reminder of the vulnerability of the community.
When contacted, the Ebonyi State Police Public Relations Officer, Mr. Chris Anyanwu confirmed the robbery attack. He revealed that he was expecting a report from the DPO of the Ohaozara Police Station.