By: Nelson Agbajor
The Executive Director, Finance and Administration of Delta State Oil Producing Areas Development Commission, DESOPADEC, Hon John Nani, yesterday night escaped death when a mobile policeman shot and killed a police inspector, attached to him at the Ajogodo area of Sapele, Delta State.
Nel Xpress gathered that the Police orderly whose identify is yet unknown as at the time of filing this report, met his untimely death when he tried to intervened in a feud between his boss and another police officer allegedly attached to an oil company in Sapele.
It was further gathered that trouble started when a Toyota Hilux vehicle, ferrying staff of Seplat Petroleum Development Company Plc, rammed into the vehicle the DESOPADEC Director was driving close to Zenith Bank at Ajogodo at about 7pm.
According to an eyewitness who simply gave his name as Kevwe, who spoke to us but pleaded for anonymity, said: “Nani was driving and the policeman was in another vehicle behind when the Hilux conveying staff of Seplat tried to overtake him, in the process, Nani car was bashed.
“The DESOPADEC Director stopped and was checking the damage on his vehicle when the killer police alighted from their Hilux and slapped him, and it was in that process that the policeman attached to Nani intervened and he was shot at the thigh and was rushed to hospital,” he added.
The other policemen at the scene was said to have wrestled the cop who shot, to the ground before disarming him and rushing the injured one to the hospital, where he gave up the ghost at about 11pm yesterday night.
When contacted Nani, he said that the shot was ment for him, but his orderly took the bullet, “the policeman actually pointed the gun at me, wanting to kill me, they bashed my vehicle from behind and I came down to check it, that was when he came down and slapped me before corking his gun and shooting.”
He added that for the timely intervention of the policeman around, who intervened swiftly, the killer cop would have killed more people.
All attempt to reach the Delta State Police command spokesperson, Onome Onowakpoyeya was abortive, as repeated calls to her line was left unanswered.
When our correspondent visited the Sapele Police Station, the two vehicles involved in the skirmish were parked there while relatives and friends of the DESOPADEC boss were seen milling around.
A senior police source who spoke to Nel Xpress in confidence confirmed the incident saying that the police officer involved in the shooting has been arrested “preliminary investigations are going on.”
Meanwhile, youths in Sapele are set to Protest against Seplat over the bad and wiked habit of one of the mobile Police men attached to the Oil company.
It was also garthered that Seplat workers are on the run in Sapele for the sake of their lives as angry residents of Sapele and Jesse ready to attack them over the killing of the officer attached to the DESOPADEC boss, John Nani