The spate of attacks on police formations in the south east continued on Wednesday with unknown gunmen numbering around 100 setting the Bende Divisional Police Station in Abia on fire.
A source who witnessed the incident said the dare-devil gunmen also left two police operatives with gunshot wounds.
The eyewitness said the hoodlums attacked the station at about 11 pm on Wednesday.
“We heard gunshots around 10.45 pm and when we came outside, we saw the station on fire.
“At that point, it dawned on us that the station was under attack so everybody began to scamper for safety,” the eyewitness said, pleading anonymity.
The public relations officer of the Abia State Police Command, Mr Godfrey Ogbonna, confirmed the attack in Umuahia on Thursday.
Ogbonna, a superintendent of police, said the operatives were shot in the leg and that the attackers also burnt down the generator house and a multi-purpose building belonging to Bende Local Government.
He said the hoodlums later released detained suspects at the station.
“They also burnt two vehicles, including the Divisional Police Officer’s Highlander Jeep, and three motorcycles parked at the station,” he said.
Ogbonna said that it was not clear how the bandits arrived at the place in their numbers.
“We do not know yet how they all gathered to execute the attack on the station.
The station is located near the main entrance to the Bende council headquarters.
The attack happened barely six hours after Gov. Okezie Ikpeazu left the council premises, venue of the reception of a former legislator, Nnenna Ukeje, back to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
Ukeje had dumped the PDP for the All Progressives Congress in 2019 after losing the party’s ticket to return to the House of Representatives for her fourth tenure.
The incident adds to recent attacks on government facilities in the state, including police formations and the office of the Independent National Electoral Commission.#
