Gunmen have killed a community leader in Anambra State, South-east Nigeria.
The victim, Peter Awa, was killed at about 11:00 p.m. on Sunday in Eke Umudioka, Okija in Ihiala Local Government Area of the state.
Mr Awa, a lawyer, was, until his death, the secretary of Okija Progressive Union and Director of Public Prosecution in Anambra State.
The police spokesperson in Anambra State, Tochukwu Ikenga, confirmed the death in a statement on Monday.
How the victim was killed
Mr Ikenga, a superintendent of police, said a preliminary investigation showed that the victim was shot in the community while he was about to alight from his vehicle.
“Some eyewitnesses have provided details already aiding the investigation,” he said.
The Commissioner of Police in the state, Nnaghe Obono, has commiserated with the victim’s family and friends, Mr Ikenga said.
Mr Obono also commiserated with members of the Nigerian Bar Association and people of the community over the loss of the former secretary.
The police commissioner ordered the immediate transfer of the case to the Homicide Section of the State Criminal Investigation Department, Awka, for investigation.
Not the first time
Mr Awa, the vice-chairperson of the NBA in the Ihiala Council Area, was elected secretary of the Progressive Union in November 2023.
PREMIUM TIMES reliably gathered that this was the second time hoodlums in the community would attack him.
Like Mr Awa, residents told this newspaper that his wife, also a lawyer, was abducted by gunmen in January and released about two weeks later, after payment of ransom.
One of the residents, who asked not to be named, said the attack on the lawyer might be connected to some cases he had been handling in different courts.
“He was a cool-headed guy who was not having trouble with anybody in our community,” he said.
READ ALSO: Police officers to get training in using drone, other devices in Anambra – Official
Another killed
Meanwhile, PREMIUM TIMES gathered that apart from Mr Awa, another resident of the community was also killed by some hoodlums on the same night.
The victim, Izuchukwu Igwenagha, popularly known in the area as Onwa, was killed in his Isieke village in the community.
However, the killing of Mr Igwenagha, sources said, was connected to a protracted land dispute in his village.
He was said to be a key figure in the land dispute.
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