Fulani herdsmen recently unleashed mayhem at Nimbo, a peace-loving
community known for its abundant agricultural produce in Uzo-Uwani
Local Government Area of Enugu State after the barbaric killing of
two teenage-students, who were helping their parents in a farm work.
Residents of the area alleged that the herdsmen who settled in the
forest of the community for long, had been robbing, harassing and
raping women at farmlands and on Nsukka–Adani Expressway after which
they retire to the forest posing as cattle-rearers.
Before the killing of the teenagers who were identified as Thadeus
Utazi, 17, JS111 and Okeh Michael, 19, SSII, the Fulani herdsmen had
on different occasions, allegedly carried out broad day light robbery
with sophisticated weapons on the road without fear of being
intercepted by security agents stationed at Adani and Nsukka Police
Area Commands. They were also reportedly armed with sharpened
machetes and arrows during their operation.
Crime Guard gathered that the herdsmen had settled in the farmland of
Nimbo in contravention of a court order barring them from occupying
the forest. They had allegedly engaged in burning residential houses
indiscriminately, harassing indigenes, robbing unsuspecting victims,
raping women at farmlands almost on daily basis and vandalising yam
barns estimated at several hundreds of thousands of naira.
When Crime Guard visited Nimbo community over the incident, the
residents stated that the fleeing Fulani herdsmen carried out an
unprovoked attack on them for asking them to stop their cattle from
destroying their farmlands. They also alleged that the Fulani men
shot and killed the two students while working in their parents'
farmlands.
It was further learnt that Chief Ugwu Utazi, father of slain Thadeus,
fainted on hearing of his son's death. He died four days later. The
distraught father of the dead student, who was quoted to have said
that he would never be alive to bury his first son, Thadeus, died
before police could release the corpse for burial.
A visit to the compound of the Utazis showed the two graves of father
and son lying side by side. The situation at Nimbo community is
hopeless as fear, anger and anxiety enveloped the residents. Their
native week market (Eke) was virtually deserted following their
inability to go to their farms and harvest crops and yams for sale.
Also several sympathisers thronged the home of Okeh Michael,19, At the
family compound the sympathisers lamented the fate that had befallen
the community. Mr. Wilfred Okeja, a civil servant with Uzo-Uwani
Local Government and step-father to the deceased, and his wife, Celina
Okeja, were speechless and in tears.
Wilfred Okeja, who managed to speak to Crime Guard, said his son,
Michael, was killed by Fulani herdsmen at their farmland "Ugbo
Owerre". Michael was said to be the only surviving child of his late
parents. According to him, "my son was killed by the Fulani people
who have been a problem to Isiamani village and the entire Nimbo
community for some time now.
Michael was not armed and had been a quiet hardworking child. His
offence was that he challenged the Fulani people for bringing their
cattle into our farmland. That was the third time the Fulani people
invaded our farmland and that third day, they shot my son to death.
The Fulani people used sophisticated weapon like AK47 rifle. They
raped our woman with reckless abandon."
Investigations showed that some time before the killing of the two
students, a driver with Uzo-Uwani Local Government, Mr. Onyia, was
attacked, shot and macheted but survived. His mobile phone, wrist
watch, shoe and cash in several thousands of naira were taken away by
the Fulani men while he laid unconscious in a pool of blood. The
victim told Crime Guard that the Fulani people were not masked to
question their identity.
Sources said before fleeing Nimbo community a night after killing the
two students, the Fulani men had shot indiscriminately into the air to
chase away members of the community. In fact, the shooting, according
to Charles Ezea, was so massive that people thought it was an attack
by the dreaded members of Boko Haram.
"Each year, our people record huge loses in farm produce due to the
devastation caused by their cattle. We went to court to stop them and
got an order in our favour. We demarcated our boundaries with them and
mounted signposts, but the Fulani people removed them at night. What
else can we do in our own land?''He questioned.
Crime Guard also learnt that after the incident, the community through
the town union, petitioned Enugu State Governor, Mr. Sullivan Chime;
Chairman Uzo-Uwani Local Government, Mr. Onwubuya Cornel and copied
the State Security Services,SSS, over the attack and killings but
nothing concrete has come out of it.
Contacted for comment over the phone, Onwubuya condemned the attacks
and killing of the students.
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