Gunshots in Oyigbo as soldiers repel mob attack in Rivers

October 23, 2020 10:49 am

There have been renewed attacks in Oyigbo local government area of Rivers state following the burning of two police stations in the area.

On Wednesday, Nyesom Wike, governor of the state, declared a 24-hour curfew in the local government area to curb the spread of violence.

But violence broke out again in a renewed mob attack between Thursday night and Friday morning, but soldiers reportedly intervened and repelled the attack.

Omoni Nnamdi, spokesman of the state police command, confirmed to TheCable that there was an attack in the area, but he added that the full detail is not available yet.

“I am aware that there was an attack yesterday but I am yet to get the full details of what happened,” he said.

For about two weeks, Nigerians in various states took to the streets to protest against police brutality under #EndSARS campaign.

While the protests had been largely peaceful, they were eventually hijacked by hoodlums in some states.

Wike had decried the attack on government properties in the state, saying “the protest has been hijacked by hoodlums to unleash carnage and destroy property”.

Rivers is not the only state where mob attacks have been unleashed. Similar attacks have been launched in several states, including Lagos, Edo, Oyo, Ondo and Imo.

Lagos has the highest number of casualties since the outbreak of widespread violence.