A notoriously armed robbery kingpin, Kenneth alias Okponchi whose gang allegedly killed nine policemen and many civilians have been shot dead by the police in Delta State.
Okponchi’s gang was killing policemen at various checkpoints across the state and dispossessing them of their rifles before he met his doom in the hands of a policeman.
Delta State Police Commissioner, CP Muhammad Mustafa said Okponchi who had been on the police wanted list for over a long period of time was arrested but was shot while attempting to escape from detention.
Explaining the circumstances of his death, the police boss stated that suspect after being arrested and detained at the ‘A Division’ Police station, Asaba attempted to escape unknown to him that he was under close monitoring by his men who shot him dead while attempting to scale the fence.
According to him; “Yesterday at about 10;1 13 pm the Divisional Police Officer (DPO) ‘C Division’, Asaba, arrested one suspected armed robber at Effurun axis with AK 47 rifle and took him to A Division in Warri GRA for detention”.
“When the suspect attempted to escape at the front of A Division when he was about being detained, he was demobilized, maimed and rearrested but in the process, the suspect sustained gunshot wounds and he was rushed to the Central Hospital where he was confirmed dead by a medical doctor. His body has since been deposited at the mortuary of the same general hospital”.
Policemen in the command who were on official patrol assignment or on stop and search in parts of the state, especially within the Asaba axis, had come under severe attacks by members of the notorious gang.
The unsuspecting policemen were usually inflicted with severe machetes injuries or shot at a close range before their service rifles were taken away.
