Father of three shot dead while helping to control traffic in Rivers state

Pandemonium broke out at Rumuokoro Junction in the Obio/Akpor Local Government Area of Rivers State last Saturday, April 1, after a man identified as Chukwuka Monye, was shot dead by unknown gunmen dressed in police uniforms. 

Punch reports that the deceased who is a volunteer traffic warden was said to be controlling traffic in Rumuokoro, an outskirt of Port Harcourt when the incident happened at about 6pm. He was said to be assisting in clearing the gridlock caused by a downpour.

A source who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the deceased had an issue with some security personnel, but could not give a proper identity of the people.

 “What I heard was that Chukwuka was arguing with some security people, but I don’t know if they are policemen or not. He is a very quiet person and very intelligent. He is a First Class graduate, 43 years old now. It is very unfortunate what happened to him,” he said

It was learned that the corpse was later retrieved from the scene by policemen and deposited at a morgue in Port Harcourt.

The distraught father of the deceased, John Monye, who is a retired warrant officer, said he was at home when someone used his late son’s telephone number to call him to inform him of the development.

 “I was in the house when somebody who said he is my son’s friend used his (Chukwuka) number to call me. That caller said Chukwuka’s corpse was lying on the ground, that they shot him. He said the police shot him, according to what they told him.”

Asked if his son was a cultist or had a problem with anyone, he said, “My son is a quiet boy. He doesn’t make trouble with anybody. Throughout his schooling days, he never had a problem with anybody.

 “He is married with three children, a daughter and two sons. My son cannot die like that. I want the government to investigate this matter and find out what happened that led to him being shot.”

Confirming the incident, the spokesperson of the state police command, Grace Iringe-Koko, said the act was perpetrated by gunmen in police uniforms.

“It happened around 6pm on April 1. The man was controlling traffic. I think he has issues with those people because they are not police officers, but gunmen wearing police uniforms were the ones that shot him. Immediately it happened, the Divisional Police Officer swung into action and his corpse was taken to a morgue.”