Men of the Nigeria Police Force in Delta State have killed a notorious armed robber known as Tompolo.
The deceased is not be confused with the former Niger Delta militant, Government Ekpemupolo, who was declared wanted by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, in February, 2016.
According to reports, Tompolo and his gang were involved in a shootout with the police and local vigilante members when he was shot at Uvwie LGA.
The incident happened on Saturday, April 9, 2017, Nigerian Eye reports.
The gang members were robbing an unidentified woman at gunpoint around 5 am when they were accosted by the policemen. Tompolo was shot dead while 3 others sustained gunshot wounds.
Tompolo had been terrorising the community before his death.
The Divisional Police Officer of Enerhen, CSP Hassan Galadima said: ”I’m aware of the incident. It’s not just the vigilante that killed the robber. They were on patrol with the police. We shot him and the rest escaped with bullet wounds. We recovered from them some expended and live cartridges inside the gun.”
The reign of this notorious robber began after the renewed restlessness in the oil-rich Niger Delta region.
The Muhammadu Buhari-led federal government has struggled with relations with the people of the South South, the home of the Niger Delta, the owners of the oil and gas resources in the country.
President Buhari cast the tone for his relationship with the troubled oil region when a few weeks after his inauguration on May 29, 2015 he said that areas that gave him 5% votes (the South East and the South South), should not expected to be treated the same as areas that gave him 97% of the votes (North East and North West).
He has followed through his policy of marginalisation by attacking leaders – political, business, and traditional – from the Niger Delta. One of his early presidential orders was that the stipends to former Niger Delta militants who were under the Amnesty Programme be stopped.
