A dreaded gang leader in Cross River State, Kingsley Utomobong, and his gang members have been arrested for the murder of an Assistant Commissioner of Police, Egbe Edum.
Edum was hacked to death by gunmen on Wednesday, December 2, at 8 Miles area, along the Murtala Mohammed Highway in Calabar.
It was gathered that he was attacked while waiting for his wife to pick him up after the bus he was travelling in, broke down.
A police source told reporters that the late Edum’s belongings were found on Utomobong and his gang members.
Utomobong, who is notorious for freely extorting money from residents of the state and inflicting pains on anyone standing in his way, was said to be untouchable because of his closeness to Governor Ben Ayade of Cross River State.
His notoriety is well known to law enforcement agencies in the state. He is also alleged to be responsible for the killing of one Ebenezer Ika in April 2018.
According to the source, Utomobong and his gang did not know that Edum was a policeman and the deputy governor’s nephew.
The source said, “The man’s belongings were found on Kingsley and his gang members. They did not know that he was a policeman or the deputy governor’s nephew,” the source said.
“The ACP travelled by road to Calabar and made friends with one lawyer on the bus. Nobody knew he was a police officer until they reached Calabar and the bus broke down at 8 Miles by the highway.
“He then called his wife and gave her his location to come and pick him. I don’t know why he left where the other passengers were or why his weapon as a policeman was not handy when he moved from where everyone was standing.
“He then strolled forward with his lawyer friend and that was how Kingsley and his gang waylaid them. They were both asked to hand over their bags. The lawyer complied, but the ACP refused and held on to his bag. They then hacked his wrist, probably to get him to release the bag. He bled to death.
“When his wife arrived and saw him bleeding, she panicked and drove into a gutter in shock. It was after he died that the information was released that his mother is the deputy governor’s younger sister.
“This Kingsley has been an untouchable terrorist until he inadvertently hit close to home. You see how the government can work when it affects them?”
The police are interrogating Utomobong. Recall that in February, Utomobong, was caught on video assaulting one Eloka Nwankwo with a cutlass.
In the chilling tape obtained by Freelanews, Utomobong, who is notorious for freely extorting money from residents of the state and inflicting pains on anyone standing in his way, was seen landing machete blows on Nwankwo said to be a Shift Leader with UniCem, a cement manufacturing company, while four other members of his gang rough-handled the victim
Ojelabi, the publisher of Freelanews, is an award winning and professionally trained mass communicator and a recipient of the D9112 Superstar Icon Award, who writes ruthlessly about pop culture, religion, politics and entertainment.
