Police arrest leader of Rivers State House of Assembly over fresh murder case

Police arrest leader of Rivers State House of Assembly over fresh murder case

Posted by Sylvester on Friday, January 3, 2014 0

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RIVERS State House of Assembly majority leader Hon Chidi Lloyd has been arrested by the police and faces possible murder charges after he was alleged to have killed wilfully two people in a road accident on December 30.

According to the police, Mr Llyod, a close ally of Governor Rotimi Amaechi, was arrested yesterday on his way to the Port Harcourt Air Force base where he was going to board the governor's private jet. It is alleged by the police that he drove his bullet proof car in a reckless manner on the Emohua on the East-West road on December 30, resulting in the death of police sergeant Urang Obadiah and local politician Kingsley Ejeuo.

Rivers State Police Command spokesman Ahmad Mohammad, said the police initially thought it was an accident until further investigations proved otherwise. Mr Lloyd, who was at the centre of a controversy in the House on July 9 last year when he was arrested for attacking fellow lawmaker Michael Chinda with a mace, still faces murder charges over that matter.

Mr Mohammed said: “The Rivers State Police Command has arrested Hon Chidi Llyod of the Rivers State House of Assembly for the murder of Police Sergeant Urang Obediah and Mr Kingsley Ejeuo, his kinsman and arch political opponent. He was arrested on his way to join His Excellency Governor Amaechi Rotimi in his private jet at the Air Force base to escape justice.

“Hon Chidi Lloyd, while pursuing his political opponent, Ejeuo, hit and knocked down Sergeant Urang Obediah, ramming over the Passat car in which Ejeuo was driving, killing him on the spot. The police initially thought it was a mere accident which ought to have been manslaughter but it was not until Hon Lloyd relocated from the private hospital where he was being treated that the police went into further investigations on the purported accident."

Assistant commissioner of police Aliyu Garba is said to have been directed by the Rivers State police commissioner Joseph Mbu to personally investigate the incident. No doubt the Amaechi camp is portraying the whole matter as a political charade designed to further victimise and harass them by the ruling People's Democratic Party (PDP).

According to the police, Hon Lloyd tried to escape from police by sneaking out of hospital before he was apprehended. Mr Mohammed added: “While being guarded by four police in his hospital bed, he sneaked out through the hospital’s back door in three tinted bullet proof jeeps and escaped.”

However, David Iyofor, Governor Amaechi's chief press secretary responded: “It is most preposterous and outrageous for the police to say that. Escape to where?

"Does it make any sense to escape from Port Harcourt to Abuja? Is Abuja not within the Federal Republic of Nigeria? It’s a blatant lie.”

Emenike Ebete, Hon Lloyds lawyer, denied the allegation saying it was one Kinika that drove the vehicle and not his client as has been insinuated by the police. He added that although Hon Lloyd was sitting at the owners seat of the car, he was too sick to be conscious of what was happening.

In addition, Mr Emenike said that Hon Chidi Lloyd was arrested at his home and not at the Air Force Base in Port Harcourt. They plan to appeal the charges and get them quashed, as they have sought to do with the attempted murder charge, claiming the whole matter is a PDP witch-hunt.