Enugu Man Recounts How Rampaging Gunmen Killed His Wife, Mother Of 6 Near Police Checkpoint

Mr. Obinna Chukwuka, the husband of the late Mrs. Ukamaka, who tragically lost her life on May 10, 2024, during a gun battle between police officers and suspected armed bandits, has shared his account of the incident.

The bloody attack, which occurred at a police checkpoint along Presidential Road by Nkpokiti junction, had also claimed lives of two policemen, and some unidentified civilians whose numbers are yet to be ascertained.

Ukamaka, mother of six was few meters to No 105, Kaduna Street, Obiagu Road, Enugu, where the poor woman was living in a one-room apartment with her husband, when the unfortunate incident happened.

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Calling for help, Chukwuka decried how he would not be able to raise their six kids with the current economic situation in the country.

The widower, a carpenter, who hails from Achi in Oji River, Council area is yet to come to terms with the sudden demise of his companion whom he described as the breadwinner of the house.

He appealed to Governor Peter Mbah of Enugu State and well-meaning Nigerians to come to his aid.

Narrating the incident, he said: “My wife, Ukamaka was a cook in one of the eateries at the Enugu Press Centre and in her usual manner had gone to work and closing around 9pm decided to treck home.

“That night I had waited for return until 9 pm and went to a place in Obiagu Road to wait for her. I waited till 10pm but there was no sign of her. I called her phone severally and it continued to ring out. So I decided to go and look for her.

“On getting to Nkponkiti junction, I saw several policemen. One of them stopped me and demanded where I was going. I told him I was looking for my wife and he ordered me back home. I returned to the house by midnight.”

He added, “I did not sleep that night. By 6am, the next morning, I  was already on my way to search for her. On that Nkponkiti junction, I saw some people gather together and discussing. I went and asked whether anything happened there and one of them informed me that a woman had been killed last night and her body had been removed from the gutter and taken away.

“I walked towards the gutter and saw her wear and immediately raised the alarm. It was from there that I was directed to Ogui police station, where they took me to the Eastern Nigeria Medical centre mortuary where her corpse is deposited,” he stated.

Lamenting he said, “My problem is how to raise the six children she left behind. I need help. My wife was the breadwinner of the family. I need help as much as possible to bury my wife and take care of the children. Two are still in the Nursery, three in the primary, and one in the secondary.

SaharaReporters had reported that Governor Peter Mbah had placed a N10 million bounty on the heads of the two policemen who lost their lives in the same tragedy that consumed Ukamaka and other innocent civilians.

While briefing newsmen after a State Security Council meeting at the Government House, Enugu, on May 11, Mbah vowed that his administration would deploy all the resources available to bring the killers to book.