It is One Week, Many killings by suspected herdsmen in Enugu

While the dust of the blood-letting perpetrated by suspected herdsmen in Enugu is yet to settle, they seem to be getting bolder by the day.

In April, 2016, 40 persons in Ukpabi Nimbo, an agrarian community in Uzo-Uwani Local Government Area of Enugu State, were feared dead during an attack by alleged Fulani herdsmen on a Monday.

Since then there has been unmitigated and mindless killings allegedly perpetrated by Fulani herdsmen, throwing up question whether the State is under jihad. The threat has continued unabated despite the efforts of the security agencies.

On August 2, 2019,the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports the protest staged by Reved. Fathers and other clerics. NAN said that that the meeting may not be unconnected to the killing of a Catholic priest, Rev. Fr. Paul Offu on Thursday, Aug. 1, 2019. The killing was also allegedly linked to Fulani herdsmen.

Offu, who hails from Okpatu in Udi Local Government Area of the state, until his death, was the parish priest of St. James the Greater Parish, Ugbawka in Nkanu West Local Government.

According to reports, there was confusion in the Emene part of Enugu, Thursday, following the alleged rape and murder of a 67-year-old woman, Mrs Regina Mba, by persons suspected to be Fulani herdsmen.

According to The Sun reporter, Magnus Eze, the incident, which occurred at a suburb, Nchatacha-Nike in Enugu East Local Government Area of Enugu State, caused total gridlock as youths from the area blocked traffic on the Enugu-Abakaliki highway.

President General of Nchatancha-Nike community Mr Kingsley Anike said:

“She (the deceased) went to farm yesterday (Wednesday) within the hours of 2 and 6 in the evening, and she was attacked. Later in the evening, when we expected her home, she didn’t come back. We started searching for her throughout the night and this morning (Thursday), there was an expanded search team.
“It wasn’t really a distant farm, it is a nearby farm because people are not leaving far from the location. So, we saw her corpse and on getting there we saw her undies were torn apart, lying by the side; she sustained stabbing on her hands and at the back of her neck and she is dead already.
“We called the police, who have visited the scene and took photo shots of the whole situation. The body has been deposited in the mortuary.”

Enugu police spokesman Ebere Amaraizu said the police received report of the incident and that the Commissioner of Police, Suleiman Balarabe, has ordered a full scale investigation.

He also confirmed that the corpse of the woman has been deposited at the mortuary of the Annunciation Hospital for autopsy.