A bloody gun duel between gunmen suspected to be kidnappers and security officers in Owerri, the Imo State capital, left 2 officers of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) dead and 2 others injured at the weekend.
The said officers were attached to the Joint Security Taskforce team of the ‘Operation Search and Flush’ patrol team while the incident happened at Ohi Junction on Orlu Road around 6.30 pm, Friday evening.
According to The Nation, the kidnappers had seized an unidentified woman inside the city centre and had driven away with her. But, when they approached Amakohia Flyover, there was a little gridlock because of the ongoing lockdown.
Upon sighting armed security men, the woman attempted to jump out of the vehicle waving and shouting to the security officers that she had been kidnapped.
The kidnappers manoeuvred the traffic jam and sped off towards Orlu Road while the security men jumped into their vehicle and gave the abductors a chase.
It was gathered that as they were chasing the abductors, they exchanged gunfire. But, the matter came to a head when the suspects stopped at Ohi Junction and engaged the security men in gun battle.
In the process, two of the NDLEA officers were gunned down while the other members of the JTF sustained various degrees of injuries.
The state police spokesman, SP Orlando Ikeokwu, confirmed the incident but said “Three NDLEA were shot, one died, two injured”, adding that effort was ongoing to apprehend the perpetrators.
