At least three policemen were shot dead and another injured on Saturday night when they attacked security personnel at a checkpoint along the Enugu/Abakaliki expressway.
The gunmen, who arrived in two Toyota Sienna vehicles, allegedly opened fire when they reached the checkpoint, killing three policemen.
Another police officer who was shot in the leg is said to be receiving treatment at a hospital Ebonyi State the capital
The incident happened on Saturday night at the checkpoint located on the highway between Enugu and Ebonyi states.
Ebonyi Police spokesman Chris Anyanwu confirmed the incident.
He said the mobsters worked on two Sienna vehicles.
“The attack by unknown persons at the Ebonyi/Enugu border happened at about 6:08 p.m.
“Three police officers from Operation Safe Highway, seriously injured. Later confirmed dead.
“Hoodlums engaged in two Sienna vehicles, entered the Check-point, opened fire on the police,” he said in a statement.
Saturday’s attack is the latest in a series of deadly attacks on police and other security agencies in the Southeast.
They have been unleashing terror in Ebonyi and other South Eastern states in recent years, attacking civilians, security operatives and offices of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
READ ALSO: Gunmen kill three policemen in southeastern Nigeria
Last December, gunmen attacked a police checkpoint in Abakaliki, killing a policeman. Armed men entered the checkpoint on a motorcycle on December 5, 2022 and opened fire on police operatives.
A week earlier, suspected pyrotechnicians set fire to the INEC office in Ibo. It is a community in Izzi Local Government Area of Ibo State.
The federal government has accused the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) of being responsible for the deadly attacks in the region.
But the group has repeatedly denied having participated in the attacks.
The separatist group is leading the agitation for an independent state of Biafra, which wants to be formed from the South-East and parts of South-South Nigeria.
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