VIDEO: Vehicles, shops burnt as ‘gunmen clash with soldiers’ in Imo

One person was reportedly killed on Monday following a “clash involving gunmen and soldiers” in Imo state.

Sources said the gunmen had earlier attacked the soldiers, and killed one of them in Awo-Omamma in Oru east LGA of the state.

The soldiers were alleged to have stormed the popular Awo-Omamma junction in search of the gunmen and in the process, set houses, shops, a fuel station, and a hotel ablaze.

Other valuables worth millions of naira were also said to have been destroyed in the fire.

In a video now making the rounds, an eyewitness says “everywhere is burning; Awo junction has finished; these people made sure they burnt everywhere before they left; since morning nobody came outside”.

VIDEO: Vehicles, shops burnt as ‘gunmen clash with soldiers’ in Imo pic.twitter.com/qokBbd7V3k

— TheCable (@thecableng) November 22, 2021

Advertisement

Many residents are also said to have fled the community.

Abutu Yaro, police spokesperson in the state, and Babatunde Zubairu, spokesman of the 34 artillery brigade in Obinze, Owerri, were not available to comment on the incident at the time of this report.

Oru East LGA had been a spot for violence in the past months.

In August, the police had arrested 26 persons allegedly linked to the killing of Fatmann Dooiyor, a divisional police officer (DPO), in the LGA.