By Esther Nworie
Palpable tension is brewing in Afikpo North Local Government Area of Ebonyi state over a reported letter from suspected armed robbers informing the community of planned robbery operation.
It was gathered that the suspected robbers also wrote to one of the old generation banks in the ancient city as well as Police Area command in Afikpo of plans to also attack them.
NIGER DELTA TODAY Online learnt that the hoodlums did not disclosed the actual date of the attack but informed them to expect their operation in the community.
Sources claimed members of the community are no longer sleeping with their two eyes closed while farmers have equally stop going to their farms.
Men of police, army and other security agents in the state have mobilized their officers to the town to repeal any possible attack by the robbers.
A visit by our correspondent to the area on Tuesday observed presence of policemen and soldiers patrolling the community especially commercial areas and other strategic locations in the community.
A combined team of police and military operatives also stationed at a popular Amauro Roundabout.
Contacted, Caretaker Committee Chairman of the local government, Mrs. Amuche Otunta could not confirm the said letter but acknowledged that there is security threat in the council, “all I know is that there is security threat in my local government”.
“Have you called the DPO? Who did the robbers addressed the letter to. Hear from the DPO, he is the Chief Security Officer of the local government. You said a letter was written to the community by robbers, I don’t know the community that received it.
“But to that extent, I know there is security threat and I don’t know whether a letter was written by robbers or not”, she said.
Efforts to get police confirmation was unsuccessful as the state Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Loveth Odah could not pick her phone calls.
But a top police official in Afikpo who preferred annomity said “you saw how we strategized based on the tip off, they didn’t come again.
“We have put our men on alert in all the beaches; Ozizza beach, Ndibe beach, on the road, everywhere including junctions.
“We are still on ground even now, we are still on ground strategizing and our men are still everywhere in the town”.
A youth leader in the area, Eze Egwu confirmed that robbers wrote to the community.
He disclosed that policemen and soldiers have taken over the area.
Asked if youths have introduced vigilante as their own measure to protect their area against possible attack by the robbers Egwu said “how can you be waiting for a well armed man with stick in the night or day in the name of security? We cannot risk our lives, it is only God that secures a city”.
It could be recalled that Armed robbers had some years ago through Ndiebechi invaded the community and carted away millions of naira in a bank in the area with some residents sustaining varying degrees of bullet injuries when the hoodlums shot sporadically to scare members of the community during the operation.
