• Police arrest pipelines vandal
Femi Folaranmi, Yenagoa
Three persons have been feared dead and two injured as suspected pirates terrorising coastal communities yesterday, invaded Ayama community in Ogbia Local Government Area of Bayelsa State.
This was even as the state police command have arrested a suspected cultist and serial pipelines vandal, Temona Boleigha Alison.
Daily Sun investigation revealed that suspected pirates invaded the community at about 9:00pm and started shooting sporadically to ward off attempts by the youths of the community to repel the invasion.
During the shooting which lasted 30 minutes, two people were hit by stray bullets while three were injured.
Sources said the shooting of the five people made everybody to scamper to safety and gave the suspected pirates a field day as they made away with 10 speedboats.
The same gang were alleged to have gone to Ogbia town, where they kidnapped a business woman, Augusta Apaga and also stole four (75 horse power) engine boats from the Ogbia water front.
Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), Mr. Asinim Butswats, who confirmed the incident, said a crack team of investigators are already on the case.
A member of the House of Assembly representing Ogbia Constituency 2, Munalayefa Gibson, condemned the attack and lamented a situation whereby criminals had a field day to shoot for 30 minutes and went away with 10 speedboats without security agencies responding to distress calls.
Gibson disclosed that Ogbia council has been thrown into mourning particularly Anyama community, where three persons were killed and two in critical conditions and receiving treatment as a result of stray bullets.
Describing the separate incidents as “senseless, wicked and barbaric,” he frowned at the repeated occurrence of cases of piracy and kidnapping along coastal communities in Ogbia, noting that the way and manner the merchants of evil operate is suggestive that there are insider collaborators from the communities acting as informants and sponsors.
Meanwhile, the police said the arrest of Alison was made possible from a tip-off to the Bayelsa Strike Force.
Alison, believed to be a member of a syndicate, has been linked with vandalism of several oil pipelines in different parts of the state.
Butwats said Alison was arrested in possession of four hand grenades, one live cartridge, a pair of military uniform, one machete, one SIM card and 12 wraps of substance suspected to be cocaine.
He added that Alison is undergoing rigorous interrogation.