THE Police on Monday in Abuja confirmed that the four
University of Port Harcourt students killed by a mob at Aluu, Rivers State,
were not robbers.
A debtor who set them up masterminded
their killings, the police rather said.
Four students, Ugunna Obuzor, (18),
Lloyd Toku, (19), Tekena Elkanah, (20) and Chiadaka Odinga, (20) were lynched
on October 5, 2012 by a mob.
The police named Coxson Lucky, alias
Bright, as the mastermind behind the killings.
The Force also said it had arrested
21 other persons, among them Segun Lawal, Felemo Solomon; Cynthia Chinwo;
Ozioma Abajuo and Chigozie Samuel Evans said to have played key roles in the
killings.
Inspector-General of Police, Mohammed
Abubakar, who said Lucky raised the alarm that resulted in the lynching of the
students, however, assured that all those found culpable in the killings would
be prosecuted.
The victims, Abubakar, who spoke
through the Deputy Force Public Relations Officer, Frank Mba, said had gone to
the community that morning to demand money allegedly owed them by Lucky, who
raised the alarm that they were armed robbers.
Although, Lucky, the police chief
said, had gone underground, detectives were still on his trail.
He said, “Intelligence report
implicated the traditional ruler of Omukiri community, Aluu, Alhaji Hassan
Welewa, as being the person who incited the mob to unleash terror on the
victims. Further investigation conducted by the police indicates that four
suspects, namely: Felemo Solomon; Cynthia Chinwo; Ozioma Abajuo and Chigozie
Samuel Evans have been closely linked to this barbarous act.”
The IG explained that the police
patrol team sent to the scene of the lynching could not rescue the students
from the mob as members of the team were pelted with stones.
He said, “Consequently, the patrol
team called for reinforcements, but unfortunately, upon the arrival of the
reinforcements, the alleged robbery suspects had been stoned and burnt to
death, while the mob immediately took to their heels.
“Their corpses were recovered by the
Police who by then had been joined by members of the Joint Task Force. The
victims were later identified to be students of University of Port Harcourt.”
He said investigation was ongoing and
efforts were being intensified to track down others who were involved in the
incident.
Abubakar said he had deployed
policemen in the area, including detectives to assist the State Police Command.
He said, “Normalcy has been restored,
while the situation in the area, especially in the university and other
tertiary institutions is being closely monitored with a view to forestalling
any untoward reactions.”
He appealed to Nigerians to see it as
their civic obligation to assist security agencies in the discharge of their
responsibility.