62-year-old electrician, Joseph Uja, has been killed by soldiers enforcing a curfew imposed on two local government areas in Enugu State.
The incident happened at Enugu-Ezike in the Igbo-Eze North LGA, one of the councils affected by the 6pm to 6am curfew while the second council is Igbo-Eze South.
The killing was said to have sparked tension around Enugu-Ezike town of Ogurute, as people feared a reprisal from community youths.
According to PUNCH, a resident, who asked not to be identified for security reasons, said on Sunday that the soldiers mistakenly shot the victim while he passed their checkpoint.
Uja was reportedly returning from Nsukka, where he went to buy electrical materials for his customers when the incident happened.
The resident said, “Joseph Uja was killed by soldiers who were trying to deflate somebody’s tyres yesterday. Uja was from Igogoro, Enugu Ezike, Igboeze North LGA.”
PUNCH reported that the Director of Army Public Relations, Brig-Gen. Onyema Nwachukwu, and the Deputy Director of Army Public Relations, 82 Division, Col. Abubakar Abdullahi, did not respond to calls or text messages for reaction.
Also, state police spokesman, DSP Daniel Ndukwe, did not take his calls.