Corporal Aliah Yusuf of the Ebonyi Police Command was on Monday shot dead by unidentified gunmen on his way home.
An eyewitness, Simon Ogbu, said the gunmen trailed Yusuf to his house, snatched his gun, shot him and told him to report the matter.
Residents, he said, fled the area for fear of being arrested. It was learnt that mobile policemen have flooded the area.
“When I heard the gunshot, I thought it was behind me. What I heard next was ‘let us see how you will go and report us’. The killers wore police uniform; they collected his gun and sped off on their motorcycle”, Ogbu said.
Deputy police spokesman Ejike Emmanuel confirmed Yusuf’s death. He said the investigation department was handling the matter.
“It was an ugly incident; the Commissioner of Police was sober on hearing the news. For now, no arrest has been made but I think the investigation department is trying to get the hoodlum.
“When he was killed, his gun was taken. He was supposed to go to his beat in Izzi. Officially, we have a modus opradi of conveying our officers to their various beats but he probably went to get personal things when he was trailed to an isolated area and killed.
“When the incident was reported, a team of mobile policemen and a divisional patrol team went to the area; they saw his body lying down and rushed him to the hospital where he was confirmed dead. The gunmen were wearing a mask,” Emmanuel said.