Operatives of the Operation Clean and Healthy Anambra (Ocha Brigade) have allegedly killed four persons, including a pregnant woman, following a violent face-off with traders at the Onitsha Main Market.
The incident happened on Tuesday along Bright Street, opposite First Bank, when the task force stormed the market to seize traders’ goods.
Diaspora Digital Media understand that resistance from the traders led to chaos, during which the operatives allegedly opened fire on unarmed civilians.
The group has been accused of routinely unleashing mayhem on residents under the guise of enforcement.
“This is heartbreaking. Four innocent people who left their homes this morning have been cut down in cold blood. Among them is a pregnant woman. Anambra people are now living in fear because criminals have been handed guns and uniforms in the name of government enforcement,” one distraught trader lamented.
At the time of filing this report, the reason for the sporadic gunshots by the OCHA Brigade operatives could not be ascertained.
Meanwhile, the unfortunate development has fueled widespread anger, with critics accusing Governor Soludo of empowering groups they describe as “government thugs” to torment indigenes and residents of the state.
However, police and the state government are yet to issue an official statement in respect to the development.
