The Special Assistant to President Goodluck Jonathan on New Media, Mr. Reno Bemigho Omokri has been allegedly fingered in burglary case of which suspected armed men reportedly invaded a property in Bendel Estate, Warri and carted away the sum of N25million naira meant for a pro-Jonathan’s support group.
Reliable sources disclosed that Omokri had on Tuesday deployed over nine armed mobile policemen with some “area boys” to a property in DPPA Housing Estate Warri which he claimed to be his late mother’s building in a bid to forcefully evict the occupants whom he had a pending court case with.
The invaders who allegedly stole the sum kept in a “ghana must go” bag in one of the bedroom after it was ransacked thoroughly, were said to have caused serious scare in the neigbhourhood as they shot spontaneously while they carried out the onslaught on the building, giving the impression that there was an armed robbery raid in the area.
Sources said that the invaders who were well armed gained access to the compound after cutting the padlock gate and reportedly climbed through the roof after it was pulled off. Our source said that the invaders’ mission was to make the building uninhabitable for the occupants in a bid to force them out.
It was learnt however that the invaders who hurriedly fled the scene after coincidently laying hands on the “ghana must go” bag, forgetfully left an “incriminating” write up which had inscription; “eviction notice” bearing Omokri’s name which they had wanted to paste on the wall of the building.
Sources said that a similar incident happened in 2014 when the estranged Omokri had after a court proceeding on the case instituted by him, mobilized some persons to the premises and boldly painted on the fence the inscription; “This house belongs to Bemigho Omokri, Fina Oyoro is being evicted at Customary Court in case No 561/2012 even when the court was yet to decide on the matter.
Confirming the development, one Prince Alex Oyoro, a former PDP Ughelli North/Udu Federal Constituency Aspirant, told newsmen that he was in Abuja when he was called that armed men unlawfully and illegally invaded his home and stolen the sum after wreaking much damage on the building on behalf of Reno Omokri who have been harassing, threatening and intimidating his family members over the disputed property which no court of competent jurisdiction had adjudicated on.
“I was called by my wife that nine armed men invaded my house and that they came with hammer, cutters, ladders and other items. About six of them wore police uniform and the others on mufti and they came with three cars. They broke the gate, some flew the fence about 8: am and try to force their way into the house. “When they couldn’t, they used the ladder to climb through the ceiling and started ransacking the house for what I don’t know. They saw a “Ghana must go” bag containing N24million and carried it. The money belong to South-South Mandate, and I was to deposited it the follow day when I return from Abuja but it appears they calculated I was not in town and that was when they stormed my house.
“As soon as they got the bag they fled but unfortunately for them they left a vital information which contain the name of Reno Bemigho Omokri who happened to be the Special Assistant to the President on New Media”.
“Before now, this Bemigho have been harassing me, claiming that he is the owner of the house and that I should leave the house. Before now he had also taken me to court on the same issue and the matter is still pending in court but he has been trying to get justice through the back door”.
“I don’t know why a man who claim he is working for the President should use the seat of the president to intimidate law abiding Nigerian during this electioneer time. I believe the attack was political because if it was a landlord and tenant issues, they could have just pasted the purported eviction notice which ordinarily goes with court judgement but in this case it was not so, they invaded the house, ransacked it and stole from it while shooting sporadically in the name of eviction”.
“So I believe it was political because Reno Omokri, we know his antecedent. He was an aide to Atiku Abubakar and it was through him that they planted him in the presidency again. So if he is working from the opposition and he is a mole in the presidency this incident would reveal it”.
“If Omokri is hiding under the umbrella of the presidency to commit crime-the world would know because this is injustice. The trauma we have passed through would not be left to go let that. We have been sleeping in this roofless house like for three days now- it is unfair, injustice and oppression of the higher day and I pray the law must take its course.
“I am also crying to the civil society organization to stand by me on this because this is oppression in high places, I have not done anything wrong to Omokri. I was not the one who took him to court, he did and the courts are yet to decide so where have I gone wrong that Omokri is after our lives?
Oyoro who is a coordinator of Jonathan/Sambo support group, South-South Mandate, while calling on the police to investigate the matter and ensure that those who invaded his house and stole from it were brought to book, he called on Omokri not to take laws into his hand but abide by the judgement of the court which according to him was yet to be given.
Investigations reveals that Omokri and the occupant of the building, the Oyoros have been having a running legal battle over the building which was reportedly lease to Oyoro’s wife, Fina Maiki by Omokri’s late mother who was a family friend of the former but unfortunately died in 2004 while the lease agreement was still in force.
It was learnt that the building located at plot 17, 19 street, DDPA Housing Estate, Ugborikoko-Effurun, opposite the Warri residence of former governor of the state, Chief James Ibori was abandoned for four year and was in a dilapidated state prior to the lease agreement but was given extensive renovation by the Oyoros after the lease agreement they had with late mother of Omokri, Ms Helen Igbene who then resided in Enugu state.
The source said that after the death of Ms Igbene (Omokri’s mother), a Lagos-based lawyer, Festus Anekwu wrote the Oyoros that administrators had been appointed for the property but suddenly one Reno Omokri surfaced to laid claim to the property that he was the eldest son of the late Ms Igbene.
Sources said that the Oyoros were constrained to start paying rentage to the said Reno Omokri between 2005 and 2007 after several mounted pressure by the latter whom at a time thumb printed a written agreement for receipt of N175, 000 which he reportedly collected personally and another which was paid to his wife’s account number.
In an earlier petition dated 21, October 2014, on behest of Mrs Fina Maiki-Oyoro by F. O. Olokor (Esq) and made available to newsmen, the petitioner alleged that following another letter threatening eviction from lawyer of the family ( of Ms Igbene), the Oyoros were constrained to pay rent from 2007 to 2013 to the chambers of Urowayino on behalf of one Mrs Misan Igbene-Okotigor (acting on behalf of the administrators of the late Ms Helen Igbene estate) after a suit No UACC/234/2010 was instituted at the Uvwie Area Customary Court, Ugborikoko-Effurun.
But irked by the development, Reno Omokri who purportedly had travelled out of the country after the tenure of his principal, the former Vice President Atiku Abubakar had expired was said to have taken the Oyoros to court in suit No UACC/561/2012 which is pending at the Area Customary Court, Effurun.
Mrs Maiki-Oyoro, in her petition said that since Omokri instituted the case against them, he have been harassing and threatening the family and at some point in 2012 at about 9:pm, he deployed armed men who claimed they were from Abuja to harassing and threatened her family.
The petition said that Maiki-Oyoro who had been traumatize as a result of the incessant harassment and threat by Omokri in the matter lost control of her car and got accident on her way from the Ugborikoko Police Station in February, 2014 where the case was reported and was hospitalized at the Oghara Teaching Hospital, Oghara.
The petitioner also alleged that Omokri had in 13th November, 2014, used the purported official letter headed paper of the presidency to petition alleged falsehood against the Oyoros in a bid to further intimidate the latter.
“That Mr.Bemigho Omokri who claims to be a media assistant in the presidency did this ostensibly for the purpose of intimidating our client out of the property even when there is a pending proceeding in the court over the issue”.
