Soldiers Shoot Vendor, Readers in Imo

As the dust of a business man killed in Imo by soldiers on checkpoint is about subsiding, a newspaper vendor, identified as Chioma and some readers who gathered at the Texaco junction point where newspapers are sold have also been shot and wounded by trigger happy security operatives in the area.

An eye witness who disclosed this to our correspondent said that trouble began when another newspaper vendor(name withheld) was confronted by the soldiers at Texaco junction, Orlu while selling newspapers.

According to the source, the soldiers approached the female vendor who is heavily pregnant and inquired who was in charge of the newspaper stand she was ,but before she could tell them that  her husband who is in charge of the New Telegraph newspaper, Chukwuezugo Ugwuibe owns the stand, she was said to have been molested before eventually arresting her husband who later showed up.

As at the time of this report, the circulation representative of the newspaper house is still being held by the soldiers while his pregnant wife who was later released is battling for her life in one of the hospitals in Orlu.

Meanwhile, the vendor and his wife were not alone in the ill treatment by the military men on checkpoint, at least 15 people who were reading and analysing the security situation in the Sate including another female vendor were hit by the stray bullets of the trigger happy soldiers.

“I can tell you that over 15 people were wounded in the sporadic shooting by the military men at Texaco junction today ,a lady vendor was shot and wounded and she is presently receiving treatment in the hospital ,many other people were wounded in the early morning incident.” The source said.