Pandemonium as Gunmen Invade Delta Community, Shoot Resident 

Residents of Edjekota-Ogor Community in Ughelli North Local Government Area of Delta State have raised the alarm over recurring attacks by armed men, following an incident that left a young father hospitalised with gunshot and machete wounds.

The victim, a father of a three-month-old baby, was reportedly attacked while returning home after purchasing food for his infant.

Speaking with journalists, the President-General of the community, Pastor Oghenemakpo Uyo, said the attack occurred at about 8 p.m. last week along the Oviri-Ogor/Edjekota-Ogor axis.

According to him, the assailants emerged from the darkness and attempted to force the victim to accompany them to an unknown destination. When he resisted, they allegedly attacked him with machetes and opened fire on him.

Uyo said the sound of gunfire alerted members of the community vigilante group, whose arrival forced the attackers to flee into the bush.

He disclosed that a cutlass and a bag containing ammunition, food items and other personal belongings were recovered at the scene.

Condemning the attack, a former House of Representatives aspirant for the Ughelli North/Ughelli South/Udu Federal Constituency, Hon. Obakpororo Johnny, called on both the Delta State and Federal Governments to strengthen security in the area.

Narrating his ordeal, the victim said he narrowly escaped death.

“They asked me to follow them, but I refused. They started attacking me with a cutlass and later shot me. God saved my life,” he said.

He added that the attackers, who were three in number, were armed with rifles and fled into the bush when community vigilantes approached.

Pastor Uyo further alleged that two days after the incident, another group of suspected herders emerged from the same bush to purchase food items in the community. He said they were apprehended and handed over to the police alongside weapons allegedly recovered from them.

The community leader also alleged that personnel of Tantita Security Services Nigeria Limited (TSSNL) narrowly escaped an ambush while carrying out their duties in the area.

Residents are now calling on security agencies to intensify surveillance and protect lives and property, warning that the growing insecurity is threatening the peace and livelihood of the predominantly agrarian community.

Efforts to obtain a reaction from the Delta State Police Command were unsuccessful as of the time of filing this report.