VIDEO: Police Claim Damage ‘Minimal’ As Gunmen Burn Down Imo Police Station, Officers Feared Killed

The Njaba divisional police station in Umuaka, Orlu Local Government Area of Imo State, has been burnt down by yet-to-be-identified gunmen.

Videos made available to THE WHISTLER in Owerri, the Imo State capital, showed that the attackers torched both the police station and officers’ residential quarters in the area.

It was also learnt that the assailants killed two police officers during the Friday night attack.

But in a statement it issued on Saturday, the Imo State police command claimed that the attack caused “minimal damage” to the station.

Michael Abattam, the command’s spokesperson, said the police successfully repelled the attack and killed two of the assailants while also recovering arms and vehicles used by the criminals.

Abattam said: “ 31/7/2021 at about 0120 hours , a convoy of bandits moving towards Njaba Town to launch an attack but were intercepted by Operation Restore Peace team of the Nigeria Police , Imo State Command .

“And in the ensuing fire fight, one of their operational vehicle’s was demobilised and two of them neutralised and the remaining ones scampered into the bush.

“On searching the vehicle one Ak 47 rifle was recovered with ten rounds of live Ammunition and a locally made double barrel pistol with two expended cartridges.”

He added that the suspects detonated an improvised explosive device (IED) near the police station which caused “a minimal damage”.

Abattam said “…cordon and pursuant exercise is on going in the area and members of the public residing in the area should not panic as the ongoing Police clearance operation is designed to root out violent criminals in that axis and they should avail Police information of persons seen treating bullet wounds or hiding within the community be reported to the nearest police station.”

Meanwhile, a lifeless body of a man is lying at Okwudor junction with his head and legs chopped off, and close to it is a Sienna bus that was burnt.

The dead body was still lying there as of the time of filing this report and the deceased’s identity is not yet known.