Anambra State Governor, Willie Obiano was reportedly held hostage by unknown gunmen at Odoata Central School in Ihiala Local Government Area of the state.
It was gathered that Governor Willie Obiano‘s convoy was held hostage on Tuesday during an attack by unknown gunmen at the campaign rally of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) in Ihiala.
A source said that Governor Obiano was arriving at the political rally when the gunmen struck and engaged the security operatives in his convoy in a shootout that lasted over one hour.
“The governor’s convoy was held for about one hour, while gunshots were ratcheting everywhere in the area,” a source said.
Police Confirms Attack At APGA Rally In Ihiala
The Police Public Relations Officer in Anambra, Tochukwu Ikenga, who confirmed the incident in a statement, said peace has been restored to the area.
He said, “The attack happened at Odoata Central school, beside St Martins Church, Ihiala. It happened at about 9:30am.
“We recovered one AK-47 rifle, two magazines with 30 rounds of ammunition and a Toyota Hilux vehicle from the attackers.
“The Police and military are currently on ground now while mop up operations are ongoing. Normalcy has since returned to the area.”
Gunmen Kill Soldier At APGA Campaign In Anambra
The Commissioner for Information in Anambra, C. Don Adinuba, who also confirmed the incident, disclosed that a soldier was killed during the shootout.
Adinuba faulted the reports that Governor Obiano’s convoy was attacked by the assailants, stressing that the security operatives repelled the attack.
He said, “A combined team of policemen and soldiers this afternoon repelled an attack by unknown gunmen at Odoata Primary School, Ihiala, where the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) was scheduled to organize a campaign rally for the November 6 gubernatorial election in Anambra State.
“The gunmen came on various motorcycles and in three vehicles, namely, a Toyota Lexus 350 ES with registration number EKY 765 EX, Toyota RAV4 with number JJJ 434FP and a Ford van whose number could not ascertained at the time of this report because it caught fire during the exchange of bullets between the gunmen and security forces.
“The gunmen, unable to withstand the superior fire power of the soldiers and police officers, quickly ran into the large premises of Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital which is directly opposite the campaign ground.
“They suffered serious injuries, even though they managed to shoot a gallant soldier”, according to an eye witness who did not want his name disclosed in the media for fear of his safety.”
This comes just a few days after the Nigerian Soldiers killed three unknown gunmen who attacked a police checkpoint in Anambra State.
