Paul Osuyi, Asaba
Hoodlums at the weekend reportedly attacked a police check point in Asaba, the capital of Delta State, where they inflicted injuries on officers on duty, and carted away their riffles.
The incident occurred at the nipping point, near a filling station around the popular Inter-Bau fly over in the state capital.
An inspector and two rank and files were said to have sustained deep machete cuts during the attack.
A dependable source who rushed to the scene after the incident disclosed that the bandits attacked the cops after about 15 minutes that the police patrol van left with the driver and one of the officers, leaving only three officers behind at the nipping point.
The source stated that the first victim just finished directing a “driver making phone call in a parked vehicle to leave the vicinity to another area when about four of the suspected bandits attacked him with machete and made away with his riffle.
“As he was being attacked, another group was also attacking the inspector whose gun was also snatched.
“The only lucky one of them was the corporal who was said to escaped with his own riffle but also suffered machete cuts in his hand.”
Investigation revealed that five out of the seven-man team had reported for duty for the day at the nipping point before Sergeant Azuka called the team leader to send the vehicle to the command headquarters to convey someone to the area command which made the patrol van driver and one officer to leave their duty post.
It was further gathered that the two other officers that failed to report at the duty post were on an illegal duty at a hotel, where the station officer was allegedly benefiting free accommodation.
When contacted, the state Commissioner of Police, Adeyinka Adeleke, neither confirmed nor debunked the report, saying that the command will issue a statement before the close of work yesterday.