In a shocking incident, a real estate company in the Okpanam community of Delta State fell victim to a violent attack orchestrated by landgrabbers. It has been reported that a group of armed policemen, allegedly acting on the orders of a landgrabber known as Okeke, stormed the premises of the estate in the early hours of the morning, accompanied by bulldozers, to carry out an unauthorized demolition.
The Managing Director of the estate, Iyke Dike, revealed that this was not the first time they had experienced such attacks. The landgrabbers had been demolishing property in the estate under the cover of darkness for several months, leaving no traces behind. However, luck was not on their side during their most recent operation on July 23. Dike received a persistent phone call in the early hours of the morning, which eventually led him to the shocking scene of the demolition.
Dike immediately took action by contacting the Special Protection Unit of the Delta State Police Command assigned to him, as well as informing the members of the community and the Divisional Police Officer of the Okpanam Division about the incident. Together with his assigned policemen, Dike arrived at the site to find a large group of armed policemen, multiple vehicles, and bulldozers already in action. They confronted the officers to find out who had sent them, but their questions were ignored.
Tensions escalated when one of the policemen accompanying the landgrabbers fired shots at Dike’s vehicle and wounded one of the assigned policemen who was trying to reason with them. The situation was on the verge of spiraling out of control when community members arrived at the scene and joined Dike and his team in demanding answers from the intruders.
Eventually, three suspects were apprehended, including the operator of one of the bulldozers and one of the individuals driving the Toyota Hilux vehicles. The arrested suspects revealed that they had been acting on the orders of Okeke, also known as Ogidi, a well-known landgrabber who owns a popular hotel in Asaba. Weapons were also discovered inside the vehicles seized from the suspects.
Upon being informed of the incident, the state Commissioner of Police ordered that the case be transferred to the State Criminal Investigations Department in Lagos for further investigation.
