21-year-old man shot dead after woman raised false theft alarm

A trigger-happy vigilante member has been accused of shooting dead a 21-year-old man, Kelvin Onyedikachi Ochioka, after a woman alleged that the deceased was a thief.

Ochioka, a telephone accessories hawker from Ebonyi State was gunned down at 23, Erhunmwunsee Street, off Ehakpen Street, Uzebu Quarters, Benin City at about 3:34pm on December 25, 2023.

According to the Nigerian Tribune, the vigilante armed with a single barrel gun, clad in mufti, on hearing the woman shouting, “thief oh! thief oh!!”, scaled his fence to open fire on Kelvin.

The victim’s friend, Mr. Salas said Kelvin had a minor quarrel with the woman alarmist popularly known as “Nurse,” over musical sound from their MP3 in the compound.

He added that a few hours after the verbal confrontation, the said woman started shouting ‘thief oh! thief oh’ on sighting his friend, and the vigilante shot him in the stomach.

Residents condemned the killing and charged the police to ensure justice was served.

They queried the action of the Divisional Police Officer (DPO), Evbuotubu Police Station for allowing the woman to be walking freely after the incident.

Spokesperson of the Edo State police Command, SP Chidi Nwabuzor, confirmed the killing, saying the woman that raised the ‘false alarm’ was arrested and granted bail as investigation is ongoing.

The PPRO added that the killer vigilante and his gun are now in police custody.