The official convoy of former Anambra State Governor, Senator Chris Ngige, was ambushed and attacked by heavily armed assailants on Thursday along the Nkpor–Nnobi Road in the Idemili North Local Government Area.
According to the Anambra State Police Command, the assailants, who were reportedly dressed in police and military uniforms, opened fire on the convoy.
A police officer in the pilot vehicle was shot, and his firearm and uniform were seized during the assault.
Crucially, a spokesperson for the former governor confirmed that Senator Ngige was not present in the convoy at the time of the attack.
The violence spilled beyond the official vehicles, with eyewitnesses reporting that a shop owner who approached the scene and a woman who was recording the incident were also shot by the gunmen.
“The pilot car was riddled with bullets,” one eyewitness said, providing a account of the severity of the assault. “The shop owner was lucky as the bullets didn’t lodge in his spine.”
The Police Public Relations Officer, SP Tochukwu Ikenga, in a statement confirmed that a coordinated manhunt for the perpetrators is now underway.
“The Anambra State Police Command wishes to inform the general public that a white Mercedes-Benz SUV, earlier snatched by armed criminals, has been successfully recovered following a coordinated police response during a pursuit operation,” SP Ikenga stated.
He detailed that a combined team of police tactical squads engaged the hoodlums in a gun duel, forcing them to abandon the stolen vehicle and flee.
Ikenga added that the injured police officer is in stable condition and receiving treatment.
The motive for the targeted attack remains under investigation as police operatives intensify a state-wide search for the suspects.
