DSS' mission to arrest suspect in Edo ends in tragedy

A midnight mission by the Department of Security Service(DSS) operatives to arrest one Omozokpia, over an alleged fraud, has ended up in tragedy in Ekpoma, Edo State, with the killing of his father, Christopher Irabor, who was a potter in the School of Medicine, Ambrose Alli University, Ekpoma,

According to Sun ,the victim was allegedly shot inside his room when the officials stormed his res­idence at Uwene quarters of Illeh village in Ekpoma, Esan West Local Govern­ment.
The operatives, who came from Benin City, were on the trail of Omozokpia.
According to Christo­pher’s widow, Faith, the DSS men came to their house at about 12 midnight and forced everybody out­side.

She sad her husband held the door to their room to prevent the security opera­tives from gaining entry, but they were overpowered.
 
Mrs Irabor narrated that one of the DSS officials shoved a gun into her hus­band and she heard a loud bang after which her hus­band fell in a pool of blood.
She said the operatives shot sporadically and later took away her younger son because Omozokpia, the first son they came for, was not at home.

However, a DSS opera­tive who spoke on condi­tion of anonymity, said the late potter was shot because he attempted to disarm one of them, adding that the vic­tim first hit one of the men with a cutlass before strug­gling the gun with him.
He said they got to the residence with the suspect’s friend and when the friend knocked, occupants of the building refused to open the door.
According to him, they broke in and started as­sembling occupants in the house, but those in a particular room refused to come out, explaining that it was when they attempted to break into the room that the landlord used a cutlass on one of them and attempted to collect the gun, prompt­ing then to shoot.