‘We Caught Somebody’ — Sabotage Suspected In IC World Supermarket Fire In Abuja

A section of the popular supermarket known as IC World Emporia Centre located along 2nd Avenue in Gwarimpa district, Abuja, was gutted by fire in the early hours of Wednesday, January 17, 2024.

IC World is one of the major supermarkets in the FCT to be gutted by fire after Prince Ebeano Supermarket and Next Cash and Carry were razed by fire.

THE WHISTLER was informed during a visit to the supermarket on Wednesday morning that the fire started at exactly 2:00 am from the administrative and inventory department where goods worth millions were stored.

Speaking to THE WHISTLER, the General Manager of IC World, Mr. George Ogonyi, said he was present at the time the fire began but could not offer a concrete answer on the cause of the fire outbreak.

According to Ogonyi, investigations were still ongoing.

“I was here when the fire started at 2 am. I just want to be careful so that I don’t confuse people with information.

“I am trying to get the clip on the CCTV, we are reviewing the CCTV because a lot of things are complicated now.

“But on the one hand, we caught somebody. So, we need to coordinate and be sure of the information we are giving out. This is a big organization and not just a roadside mini-business,” Judge said.

Ogonyi further told THE WHISTLER that the management could not immediately give an estimate on the worth of goods destroyed in the fire.

He said the main mall wasn’t affected but the office of the chairman and the inventory department where goods were kept was completely destroyed.

“We had about six 75-inch LG televisions worth N700,000 each destroyed in the fire. Others were Cylinders, Fans, Wines, Perfumes and other items which could not be retrieved from the Fire,” Judge decried.

An eyewitness who spoke to THE WHISTLER claimed that the fire wasn’t an accident but a sabotage by an unidentified person who had been apprehended.

“A man set fire to the inventory department, but because nobody was alert at the time, the fire spread to the highly inflammable goods that could not be saved”.

The eyewitness added that fire service arrested the situation “hours after the fire began”.