A prominent businessman has narrowly escaped being kidnapped and murdered along Enugu/Echera Road, Nsukka, Enugu State.
The victim, Ekene Aniah pictured above, was allegedly attacked while
returning home from work around 8.10pm. He was reportedly negotiating a
bend when an ash coloured Mercedes Benz car carrying about five boys
overtook and blocked his car.
It was gathered that the passengers of the car emerged and beat the
victim to pulp after which they bundled him to an unknown destination.
But Aniah said he was able to identify one of the assailants as one of
his neighbours at the Nsukka main market.
“That neighbour was the first to attack me while another assailant
raided my car and collected N557, 500 contained in two different
cellophane bags which were the total cash sales on that fateful day.
Immediately the assailants noticed that I was unconscious, they
bundled me into their waiting Mercedes Benz car and sped off to an
unknown destination.
“I was lucky when my attackers, suspecting that I will not survive,
dropped me along a dark end in my street. They subsequently rushed to
Nsukka police station to complain that I attacked them but that they
were able to overpower me and collected my car key which they deposited
with the police.
Meanwhile, the policemen on duty suspected foul play and arrested
them. Their colleagues hiding outside the police station fled from the
scene. Incidentally, as they were disappearing, I regained consciousness
and placed a call to the police.
Policemen rushed to the scene and drove me to the station from where I
was taken to the Intensive Care Unit, ICU, at Bishop Shanahan Hospital,
Nsukka where I received treatment till I was referred to a specialist
hospital in Enugu for further medical attention.”
In a petition addressed to Enugu State Commissioner of Police through
his counsel, Barr. JMCC Ogbuka, the victim noted that one man, said to
have mobilized the suspects, was seen at scene of the incident when the
police, in company of the victim, went to recover his car.
Sunday Vanguard reports that the matter was charged to court after
police arrested two of the suspects, Chinedu Nweke and Otiji Chibuike.
They were arraigned on a -two count charge of felony to wit:
attempted murder before a magistrate court in Enugu North on July 1
after which they were remanded in prison custody and the case later
transferred to High Court 10, Enugu where they were granted bail and the
case adjourned till July 13 for trial and kidnapping.