A mobile policeman allegedly attached to Seplat Petroleum Development Company Limited on Sunday shot dead a police inspector serving as orderly to the Executive Director, Finance and Administration of the Delta State Oil Producing Areas Development Commission, DESOPADEC, Hon John Nani.
The unfortunate incident took place in the Ajogodo area of Sapele in Delta State.
Advocate.ng gathered that the Police orderly whose identity is yet unknown as at the time of filing this report, met his untimely death when he tried to intervene 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 a hospital,” he added.
The other policemen at the scene were 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 Sunday night.
When contacted, Nani said that the shot was meant 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.
Attempts to reach the Delta State Police Command spokesperson, Onome Onowakpoyeya were unsuccessful as repeated calls to her line were not answered.
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 in confidence confirmed the incident saying that the police officer involved in the shooting has been arrested “preliminary investigations are going on.”
