By Archibong Jeremiah
Men of the Nigeria Police Force, Ekori Division, Cross River State Command, on Friday, repelled an attempted invasion of the community by unknown gunmen.
According to a reliable community source who witnessed the shoot out, “Six men suspected to be from neighbouring Afikpo in Ebonyi State, came in a boat to our water front and rather than come down from the boat to find okada (cyclist) and proceed with their journey, four came down and sat on the rock at the waterfront while two stayed back in the boat. After observing them for a prolonged period, the Police was alerted and the DPO mobilized and moved quickly to the waterfront with two armed Policemen to confront them.
“On sighting the community members and Police approaching, the gunmen opened fire and the Police responded. After a brief exchange of fire, one of the gunmen was hit by a bullet but was taken into the boat by his cohorts while the invaders also shot Constable Okoi Liyoma”.
The identity of the invaders is unknown as at press time but there are speculations already that they might be members of IPOB seeking to infiltrate Cross River State or members of a gun running cartel.
As at the time of filing this report, Constable Okoi Liyoma, was recovering at the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) of the University of Calabar Teaching Hospital (UCTH), while the community is now on red alert as some suspicious movement was noticed on Saturday.
A security source also told CrossRiverWatch that the Police in the State are intensifying their operations in border communities following credible intelligence that IPOB has plans to make incursions into Cross River with daring attacks on public places including, the Anti-Cultism and Kidnapping Squad, Area Commands, Prisons, and large shopping malls.
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