A gang of bandits riding on a motorcycle on Friday in Owerri Imo State stabbed to death a girl identified simply as Esther.
Our correspondent gathered that Esther said to be a student of Imo State University, Owerri operated a Point of Service (PoS) business outfit around the university area.
Students who spoke to our correspondent on Saturday, said that the criminals had accosted Esther who hailed from Orlu in Imo State while she was going home after closing for the day.
According to one of the source, “The criminals operated on a motorcycle. They confronted the girl while she was going home and attempted to dispossess her of her belongings but she refused. They stabbed her, took her belongings and fled.
“Students within the area rushed her to a hospital where she was pronounced dead. She bled to death as the cut was deep. This is unfortunate. This was a girl who her neighbours saw while she closed for the day and was heading home.
“They apparently were monitoring her movement. She was pronounced dead at Imo Specialist Hospital at Umuguma. This is saddening.”
National Newsbreak learnt that the development led to a pandemonium Saturday as students who got wind of it, attacked commuter motorcycle operators plying the area.
An eyewitness told our correspondent that incident of stealing money from PoS operators had increased in the area in recent times.
A member of the Students Alliance, a body that takes care of the welfare of students in the area, speaking anonymously, said that hoodlums had changed their pattern of robbing PoS operators.
He said, “Their recent plan is that someone, probably, one of them will deposit large sum. Ten minutes later, they will strike since they know that the money will still be with the operator.
He added that they usually do such huge lodgment between 6:00 pm to 8:00 pm.
A detachment of police was later deployed to restore calm.
The spokesperson for the police in the state, Michael Abattam, said the police have launched investigation into the incident.
