Hyacinth Chinweuba
A 23-year old boy identified as Collins, was shot dead during a protest by suspected Yahoo boys, in Ozoro, headquarters of Isoko North Local Government Area, Delta State.
They were protesting alleged brutality and extortion by the police in the area
The crisis started when the protesters took to the streets of the town, wielding different placards which bore various inscriptions such as “Police stop extorting money from us”, ” Police leave us alone” among others, as they marched from Owhelogbo junction down to other major streets before terminating at NDC road.
An anonymous source said: “The youths came out this morning to protest against the police continuous harassment of young boys suspected to be internet fraudsters.
“They are complaining about the police searching their phones on the way and asking them to pay some huge amount of money to bail themselves on the spot otherwise they will be taken to the station. Others complained of being invaded in their houses by the police without a search warrant.
“The police later mobilized and in the process of trying to dispel the protesters, a gunshot from a stray bullet hit the lad and he died on the spot.”
The development has generated tension in the area as various trucks of policemen were seen mobilizing in strategic positions to restore normalcy to the town.
The body of the deceased had been taken to the mortuary of a private hospital in the area.
Contacted, Police Public Relations Officer of the state command, Onome Onovwakpoyeya said “we heard that yahoo boys protested. We are still trying to investigate who shot.”