Protest as soldiers kill mentally ill man in Rivers

There was commotion in Alesa community in Eleme Local Government Area of Rivers State on Thursday when two soldiers shot and killed a man, who was alleged to be mentally unstable.

It was learnt that the man, who always stood by the roadside to pelt vehicles with stones and other hard objects, threw a bottle at a Hilux van conveying the soldiers from Refinery Junction to their duty post.

An eyewitness told SATURDAY PUNCHthat the soldiers, who were not aware of the mental state and health condition of the young man, took offence as a result of the victim’s action.

According to the eyewitness, the soldiers threatened to shoot the man, a development that spurred the victim to throw a stone at them.

Angered by the development, one of the security operatives was said to have come down from the vehicle and shot the man in the leg before he (victim) fell on the ground.

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The eyewitness, who pleaded anonymity, said that another soldier came down and shot the man in the chest, killing him instantly.

He said, “This man was always smashing the windscreens or side mirrors of private vehicles. People in Eleme knew him for that, but it is unfortunate he did what he did to the wrong people. The soldiers too thought he was a violent person.”

The incident, which happened at about 10 am, made angry youths from the community to storm the streets in protest of the killing of the young man.

It was gathered that the Chairman of Eleme Local Government Area, Chief Oji Ngofa, later appealed to the protesting youths to calm down.

“It is unfortunate that this kind of crude action is still being experienced in a democracy. Why will they (soldiers) just kill a man like that? I am calling for the immediate withdrawal of the soldiers from Eleme.

“Now, they have killed him just like that. We as a council will not take this lightly. We must move for the prosecution of these soldiers, because we know them,” Ngofa added.

While efforts made to contact the Army Public Relations Officer, Lt.-Col. Aminu Iliyasu, to speak on the incident did not yield any result, the state Police Public Relations Officer, Ben Ugwuegbulam, confirmed the incident.

Ugwuegbulam, however, said he was yet to get the details of the incident.