Protests erupt in Rivers after police officer kills father of 6

Monday, February 10, 2025 - Hundreds of youths from Omagwa Community in the Ikwerre Local Government Area of Rivers State on Sunday barricaded the busy Omagwa session of the Port Harcourt-Owerri Road to protest the alleged k!lling of a father of six identified as Bright Egbule by a police officer.

It was gathered that police officers attached to Omagwa Divisional Police Command stormed the community on Saturday in ‘search of a drug dealer’ and one of the officers shot Egbule in his compound. 

A family source told Punch that the deceased was at home with his wife on Saturday night when the policemen stormed the compound, with one of the trigger-happy operatives allegedly opening fire on him.

“The officers came here last night with full force. They said they were looking for a drug dealer, but they came into the compound here and killed an innocent man,” the source said.

“It was on that note that the community youths mobilised and blocked the federal road with the corpse. We want the police to provide those officers who killed Chukwuma. All we need is justice for Chukwuma.”

Following the incident, angry youths took the corpse to the Police Station and barricaded the road leading to Port Harcourt Airport.

The protest however caused gridlock on the road with the motorists and travellers stranded until the intervention of the LGA chairman, Israel Agbosi.

Addressing the protesters, Abosi described the incident as unfortunate and unacceptable and appealed to the angry youths not to take the law into their own hands. He alled on the Commissioner of Police to investigate the k!lling and ensure that the officers involved were fished out and made to face justice.

Spokesperson of the State Police Command, Grace Iringe-Koko, who confirmed the incident, said the policeman had been arrested.

While commiserating with the family of the deceased, she said his remains had been deposited in a morgue.

“The command is aware and we are on top of the situation. The officer has been detained. Normalcy has now been restored, and adequate security is on the ground to prevent any breach of peace. The man’s corpse has been deposited at the morgue and the investigation is ongoing,” she added.