A 21-year-old man, Kelvin Onyedikachi Ochioka, was killed by a trigger-happy vigilante member in Edo State after a girl raised an alarm, alleging that the deceased was a thief.
Ochioka, a phone equipment hawker from Ebonyi State was gunned down at 23, Erhunmwunsee Road, off Ehakpen Road, Uzebu Quarters, Benin Metropolis at about 3:34pm on December 25, 2023.
In line with the Nigerian Tribune, the vigilante armed with a single barrel gun, clad in mufti, on listening to the girl shouting, “thief oh! thief oh!!”, scaled his fence to open fireplace on Kelvin.
The sufferer’s buddy, Mr. Salas mentioned Kelvin had a minor quarrel with the girl alarmist popularly often called “Nurse,” over musical sound from their MP3 within the compound.
He added that a couple of hours after the verbal confrontation, the mentioned lady began shouting ‘thief oh! thief oh’ on sighting his buddy, and the vigilante shot him within the abdomen.
Residents condemned the killing and charged the police to make sure justice is served.
They queried the motion of the Divisional Police Officer (DPO), Evbuotubu Police Station for permitting the girl to be strolling freely after the incident.
Spokesperson of the Edo State police Command, SP Chidi Nwabuzor, confirmed the killing, saying the girl that raised the ‘false alarm’ was arrested and granted bail as investigation is ongoing.
The PPRO added that the killer vigilante and his gun are actually in police custody.
