Gunmen have attacked the residence of the spokesperson of the Coalition of United Political Parties (CUPP), Ikenga Ugochinyere, at Akokwa in Ideato North Local Government Area of Imo State.
According to a source from the area, the gunmen who came in large numbers were confronted in a fierce gun duel by Ugochinyere’s police orderlies, preventing them from getting at him.
But his uncle living close to him was said to have been killed during the melee and two others yet to be identified butchered to death.
According to videos seen by SaharaReporters, the gunmen set some houses around his residence on fire including vehicles.
The CUPP spokesperson also confirmed the killing of his uncle and the razing of houses in the area by the gunmen.
SaharaReporters had in December 24, 2022, reported that some armed men attacked Ugochinyere’s convoy, after which he alleged that militias loyal to the Imo State government were after his life.
SaharaReporters had also reported how the Imo Government had earlier called on the police to arrest and question Ugochinyere over alleged hacking of the server of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and forgery of a lawyer’s signature and stamp used to file a “secret court action” in a Federal High Court in Owerri, to stop the use of Biometric Voter Accreditation System, BVAS.
Also, SaharaReporters reported that Ugochinyere released a threatening audio conversation reportedly between him and Chinasa Nwaneri, the Special Adviser on Special Duty to Governor Hope Uzodinma of Imo State.
In the audio, Chinasa threatened to imprison Ugochinyere or harm himself, saying, “Ugochinyere, I will imprison you. What I want to achieve is just to imprison you. That is what I want to achieve. You are lucky that you did not go to Owerri that day. I will imprison you and you will see it.”
When Ugochinyere asked him if that was what Governor Uzodinma wanted to achieve, Chinasa said, “Ugochinyere, I want to achieve it. I want to imprison you. I have never mentioned your name in a bad corner but you decided to go… and call me a criminal. If I did not imprison you, I will harm myself.”
