Four officials of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) searching for drug peddlers in the Oruma community in Ogbia Local Government Area of Bayelsa State, were reportedly injured at on Wednesday.
Vanguard report says the NDLEA operatives were said to have stormed the border community with Rivers State with the intention to arrest some drug peddlers when they were attacked by irate youths.
Confirming this in Yenagoa on Thursday, Spokesman of the state command of the NDLEA, Mr. Daniel Obah stated that the four men were critically injured and are still in the hospital receiving treatments.
Narrating the event that led to their attack, the NDLEA spokesperson said the men of the command went for a routine operation to arrest some drug peddlers, when some youths came after them, leaving four personnel critically injured, stating that the affected personnel are still in the hospital, while three others with minor injuries have already been discharged.
He also claimed that the operational vehicle used by the operatives was also vandalized by youths suspected to be accomplice of the drug peddlers.
But an indigene of the area said that the NDLEA operatives bagged into the area on Wednesday evening to arrest some locals who the drug enforcement body accused of being involved in drug related activities.
“While they were trying to arrest the accused, the youths resisted and immediately the NDLEA personnel opened fire which led to injury of four persons in the community who are currently receiving treatment in an hospital in Yenagoa, the state capital,” the indigene accounted.
He also said the NDLEA has resisted anyone from the community from visiting the victims in the hospital thereby threatening to arrest anyone from Oruma community who tries to visit.
Meanwhile, the Youth President of Oruma community, Inebika-emi, said the youths in the community did not challenge the officials but only asked to know why the accused was arrested without any form of notice from the community leaders.
According to him, four of their youths were seriously injured and arrested, while the law enforcement body took them to Yenagoa for treatment in a hospital, without allowing their relative to visit them.
He called on the state commander NDLEA and the Bayelsa State government to step into the matter, as they would not want to take laws into their hands because Oruma represent peace.
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