Six policemen attached to the Ebonyi State Police Command, who were deployed to Ezza North Local Government Area, during last Saturday’s governorship and House of Assembly elections, have been arrested.
It was learnt that unidentified hoodlums had invade Community Secondary School, Okposi Umuoghara (polling unit 07), which served as of Independent National Electoral Commission’s Registration Area Centre and set ablaze electoral materials within the premises and burnt down the school building.
The six policemen were detained for their failure to arrest any of the suspects involved in the act.
It was further gathered that the hoodlums invaded the INEC RAC at about 2:15am and attacked the commission’s officials.
“After invading the place, they started shooting sporadically, which scared people away, before setting the centre and INEC sensitive materials ablaze,” an eyewitness told Southern City News.
The state Commissioner of Police, Awosola Awotunde, had reported to the officer in charge of election monitoring in the South-East, who ordered for the arrest and proper investigation of the incident, which is suspected to be a form of sabotage.
When contacted, the Police Public Relations Officer, ASP Loveth Odah, confirmed the arrest of the policemen.
She also frowned on the incident.
“The officers are being tried on oath; they were subjected to internal investigation. They are being investigated and the ad-hoc employees are being investigated,” she said.
Odah explained that the policemen in their statements said the hoodlums came in and put off the generator supplying light to the centre, which made it difficult for them to confront them (hoodlums) to avoid shooting at an innocent ad-hoc or INEC workers who were in the premises.
She said the incident was being investigated.