Tension in Port Harcourt as Youths Protest Alleged Police Shooting of Driver
Youths on Friday took to the streets around Agip Junction and Ada George in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, protesting the alleged shooting of a motorist by a police officer.
The protest followed an incident reportedly involving a police patrol team and a driver at Agip Junction on Thursday evening, with protesters demanding justice for the alleged victim and calling for the police officer reportedly involved to be brought to justice.
In a viral video seen by Kristina Reports, the protesters could be heard expressing anger over the incident and urging the Rivers State Government to ensure that the matter is thoroughly investigated and not swept under the carpet.
According to an eyewitness account, the incident occurred at about 5pm on Thursday, after the motorist allegedly failed to stop when he was flagged down by police officers at the junction.
The eyewitness alleged that one of the officers opened fire at the vehicle, hitting the driver.
The driver reportedly lost control of the vehicle following the shooting and subsequently crashed into three people, according to the account.
The eyewitness further alleged that the police officer fired additional shots while attempting to escape from the scene.
The incident reportedly sparked outrage among youths in the area, who allegedly confronted the officer, seized his firearm and assaulted him before other police personnel arrived and took him away.
The circumstances surrounding the shooting, including the identity and condition of the driver and the three people reportedly hit by the vehicle, could not be independently verified by Kristina Reports as of the time of filing this report.
The Rivers State Police Command has also not issued an official statement on the incident.
Several calls and messages sent to the Command’s Public Relations Officer, ASP Blessing Agabe, seeking the police’s account of the incident, were unanswered as of the time of this report.
The protesters are demanding that the police conduct a transparent investigation into the incident and that anyone found culpable be held accountable.
They also appealed to the Rivers State Government to intervene to ensure that the matter receives appropriate attention and is not allowed to disappear without accountability.
The development comes amid renewed public scrutiny of policing and security issues in Nigeria.
During the recently concluded Annual General Meeting of the Nigerian Bar Association, social commentator Vincent Martins Otse, popularly known as VeryDarkMan, had accused the police of being complicit in the country’s insecurity—a claim that generated considerable public discussion.
However, there is currently no established connection between those earlier comments and Thursday’s incident in Port Harcourt.
As of press time, the police had yet to publicly confirm the shooting, identify the officer allegedly involved, or provide details on the reported confrontation that followed.
