‘The circumstance of the death made some students of Ebonyi State University conceive the idea of a protest against police actions’
By Nweze Anaga,
Abakaliki
Ebonyi State Police command has said that the chase that resulted in the death of Ebonyi State University (EBSU) student accident victim along Oriuzor road was caused by the refusal of the driver to stop when ordered by the police.
The police disclosed this in a statement issued by the command’s PPRO, Onome Onovewakpoyeya, on Sunday, in reaction to the viral report trending online that alleged that police pursued an accident victim to death in Ebonyi State.
While justifying the action, it explained that the driver raised the suspicion of the police operatives, which made them pursue the vehicle, even when the driver did not stop till he was involved in an accident along Oriuzor road.
It said that the incident occurred on December 2, 2023 at about 12pm when police operatives on stop-and-search duty around Nkaliki road sighted a vehicle that was approaching their checkpoint but suddenly reversed and sped off which made the police officers to raise suspicion over his movement, and therefore, pursued the vehicle.
According to the statement, “The Traffic officers were alerted and with the effort of good citizens, the victim, Ayogu Evans, a student of Ebonyi State University, was conveyed to the hospital where he unfortunately gave up the ghost.”
Also read: FUTO: How Police brutalised, extorted money from students in Owerri
The statement further explained that the circumstance of the death made some students of Ebonyi State University conceive the idea of a protest against police actions.
Meanwhile, the Commissioner of Police, Ebonyi State Command, CP Augustina Ogbodo, has addressed the student leaders and assured them that their concerns would be thoroughly investigated and anyone found culpable would be sanctioned accordingly.
The commissioner also appealed to the citizens to support the police, while carrying out their mandate and to report any unprofessional conduct of police officers on duty to the police authority.
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