A bomb was detonated in a local restaurant in Kara community in Ogbaru Local Government Area, near Onitsha in Anambra State on Tuesday night, May 3, 2016 around 8pm.
The Trent’s reporter visited the scene of the bomb blast and confirmed from eye-witnesses that the bomber is a middle-aged man believed to be from Northern Nigeria who pretended to be a traveller who needed a restaurant where he could “eat for N150”.
“The bomber is a man who came to the area, mostly populated by Northerners, and asked for a restaurant to eat for N150. He was directed to the eatery where he dropped his bag and asked for food. He ended up taking a few spoons of the food and leaving the place,” an eyewitness told our reporter.
“Unknown to the people, he left behind a bomb in his bag which was later detonated about 5 minutes after the mystery man left, and injured seven people including a woman identified as Chioma.”
Seven people were injured in the blast which rocked the Kara area. The victims were taken to a private hospital, Chioma Hospital. According to our source, three of the victims who were critically injured were transferred to St. Charles Borromeo Hospital in Onitsha.
“The bomber spoke in Hausa language, he looked haggard, like a traveller. Nobody suspected he had evil intentions,” another eye-witness told The Trent. “I can’t believe Boko Haram has come to Anambra. This is terrible.”
Kara is a commercial area where traders from the North sale their products like food stuff, chicken, and ram. commercial sex workers also operate from the area which shares a perimeter fence with SS Peters Catholic Church, Nkutaku.
By the time our reporter visited the scene of the bomb blast, security agencies had already visited the scene and cordoned off the crime scene. Eyewitnesses say that a team of Navy officials had just left before our reporter arrived.
A Navy checkpoint is close the the place where the bomb blast occurred.
“A Naval base is not far from here,” a middle-aged trader who gave his name as Musa disclosed to our reporter.
The deputy commissioner of police in charge of operations (DCP – Ops) for Anambra State, Mr. A. J. Kokoma visited the crime scene. He was accompanied by a team of policemen which included the divisional police officers (DPOs) of police stations close to Kara. Specifically, the DPO of Okpoko, Fegge, and Onitsha Inland Town were present at the scene of the bomb blast.
Mr. Victor Aguluo, the chairman of Ogbaru local government council was also at the scene of the bomb blast. Professor Peter Kachi, the deputy chairman of the Red Cross Society, Anambra State chapter also visited the scene of the blast with his team of humanitarians to assess the situation.
A Red Cross official who spoke with The Trent confirmed that the Red Cross had been involved in aiding the victims of the bomb blast since Tuesday.
