By Onyekachi Eze
The insecurity level ravaging Imo communities has hit the household of the Accountant General of Imo State, Sir Val Obieze, as unknown hoodlums murder his immediate elder brother in cold blood.
It was a black Sunday, January 3, 2021 for the Obieze family, as on the sons, Mr. Ignatius Obieze was gunned down by suspected assassins.
However, circumstances surrounding the gruesome murder had received different interpretations, by both the Police and some sections of the media.
Narrating how his brother died, the AG told the press that neither the State Police command, nor Ozisa FM, Owerri, got the accurate news on how the late brother died.
According to Sir Val, the Police in its crime bulletin had reported that his brother was a billionaire and killed by kidnappers in Akatta.
Ozisa FM Owerri, on their own report was said to had reported that late Ignatius Obieze was murdered around Okporo Orlu.
For the two reports, the AG described it as false, stressing that his slain elder brother was neither a billionaire, nor shot dead in their community Akatta.
He told newsmen that the ungodly incident exactly happened at Awo-Idemili, in Orsu LGA, and not in Akatta as erroneously reported.
“My brother was not a billionaire, he was just a public servant, not even rich, but a normal staff that earns normal salary”.
The Accountant General further revealed that until his death, he was only a staff of NNPC, in Warri, Delta State.
Meanwhile, Sir Obieze narrated that the incident occurred between the hours of 5pm on January 3, 2021.
He disclosed that while the late brother, in company of his other 4 cousins were in Awo-Idemili to carry the corpse of their uncle’s daughter that died for deposit in the morgue, they were intercepted by hoodlums.
Further narrating an eye witness account, he said on sighting the presence of those men, they (deceased Ignatius and cousins) parked on the other part of the road to monitor their movement of the unknown men.
Suddenly, the hoodlums approached them and ordered all to alight from the hilux vehicle.
He said they were also asked to face down. Along the process, the hoodlums hit the five men with cutlass, and ended the operation with gunshots and zoomed off with their (Obieze’s) Hilux vehicle.
The survivors who narrated the incident to the family said while the hoodlums zoomed off, they stood up from where they laid, only to discover that they emptied their bullets on the body of Ignatius Obieze.
Trumpeta Newspaper gathered that on the same fateful day, the Obieze family had a memorial service of their son, late Sir Anthony Obieze former Oru East House of Assembly Member in 2003-2007.
“On the said January 3, 2021, we had a memorial service of my late brother, Anthony Obieze KSJI, at St. Patrick’s Catholic Church Ihitte-Akatta in Oru East, under the Orlu Diocese;
After the church service, both the Priests, Family members and parishioners moved to his family to part at his grave, from there everybody converged to my house for reception, before my immediate elder brother that was killed that day set out to Awo-Idemili”, Sir Val said.
Interestingly, he revealed that same group of hoodlums that perpetrated the heinous crime to his brother, had already operated and killed man, his security orderly and another person in Ihiala, before coming to Awo-Idemili.
It was said that later after fee days, the Army at 34 Artillery Brigade Obinze recovered the hilux vehicle, which was confirmed by the Deputy Commissioner of Police.
Sir Val Obieze therefore asked the public to disregard all contradictory news about the death of his brother, hence the aim of setting records straight.
