By SouthernVoicenews
As criminal and cult related activities continued to increase in Ughelli town and environs, residents have expressed worries and loosed confidence in the Nigeria police force whom they said could not even protect themselves safe the residents.
Their complaints followed the killing of a police officer with Dragon 19 Security Patrol Team, attached to Ughelli Area Command, and simply identified as Jude Ukpaka who was shot dead and his Ak-47 rifle stolen by suspected gunmen along the Ogor-Evwreni-Ughelli axis of the East-West road in Ughelli North Local Government Area of Delta State.
It was gathered, that the officer and two of his other colleagues were at a check point before the unfortunate incident occurred on Wednesday at about 5-6pm on Wednesday, July 13, 2023.
According to an unconfirmed report, there was an attack on travellers at same area in the early hours of same day before the killing of the police officer in evening at almost at the incident.
It would be recalled that, barely two months ago, two police officers, PC Ujeyah Matthew and Sergeant Ijebu attached to Ofuoma division of the Delta State Police Command, were killed and their guns stolen at Ekredjebor community in Ughelli North.
Efforts to reach the Delta State Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Bright Edafe was not successful as his mobile line was not connecting as at the time of this report.
But a senior security source from Delta State Police Command who confirmed the incident on anonymous ground, disclosed that the other officers escaped into the swamp.
“They ran into swamp until they were rescued by another team of police officers from Ughelli Area Command, while the remains of the deceased officer has been deposited at the morgue”.
Meanwhile, residents have also blamed the police for releasing criminals that pretended to be yahoo boys after collecting a huge sum from them.
“How will police officers on check point arrest a criminal under the guise of yahoo boys and driving recklessly threatening to kill police officers, yet on getting to the station, top police officers will collect money and free them just like that. Some even come out boasting that I told you I will come out, nothing dey happen, he said”.
Crime in Ughelli and environs have gone up recently with broad day killing of residents and policemen. Presently, Ughelli and other neighboring towns is seen as safe haven for cultists, yahoo boys and criminals.
Residents are calling on the Commissioner of Police, Delta State, Wale Abass to restructure and possibly inject new hands to the various division and area commands in order to curb and reduce ugly menace of crime in the area. They said if police officers are being murdered without retaliation or any form of arrests, what will the residents do.