A legal practitioner in Ebonyi State, Ekigbo Sampson, has reportedly suffered severe ear injuries after being attacked by armed officials of the Abakaliki Correctional Service Centre.
The incident occurred on Tuesday evening near a filling station along the Abakaliki/Enugu Expressway, leaving the lawyer with a diagnosis of ear trauma and otitis media, as confirmed by a police medical report.
The medical report, issued by the Nigeria Police Medical Department at the state police headquarters in Abakaliki and signed by DSP Uche Okette, revealed that the lawyer had a history of a slap to his right ear, which caused severe pain and trauma.
He was referred to the Alex Ekwueme Federal University Teaching Hospital, Abakaliki, for further treatment after receiving initial first aid.
According to a petition signed by his lawyers, J. Elom and Kingsley Ogodo, and addressed to the Ebonyi State Commissioner of Police,Adaku Uche-Anya the attack occurred after a minor collision involving Ekigbo’s vehicle and a tricycle.
While attempting to resolve the matter at a nearby filling station, four armed officials from the Abakaliki Medium Correctional Center allegedly confronted him, leading to the assault.
The petition reads “on the 26th day of November, 2024 at about 1400 hours, our client while on transit around filing station, Abakaliki/Enugu Expressway, was collided into by a tricycle.
“That upon the occurrence of this incident, our client packed across Hariz filing station and walked into the filing station to sort out how to fix his vehicle, discharging the tricycle driver.
” That while waiting outside for his mechanic, our client was just walking across the filing station when the suspects at about 1427 hours drove in a Green Hiace Hummer Toyota bus of the Abakaliki Medium Correctional Center and attempted to collude into our client.
“That our client merely asked the driver of Hiace Hummer Toyota bus whether he knows what he is doing and moved on, only for Mr. Pius Nwode to alight from the bus with him arm/gun together with one tall dark officer and aggressively walked to our client and slapped him hard on his right ear, cocked his gun, pointed at our client and retorted aggressively thus ” I will waste you here and nothing will happen.
“That upon hearing this statement with a cocked gun pointed at him, our client was in grace fear for his life as he was uncertain as to next line of action the suspects will take”, the petition said.
Public Relations Officer of the Abakaliki Medium Correctional Center, Nneka Iyasei said she has not received report on the incident.