Final year student killed as cultist clashes in Rivers University

The Rivers State police command yesterday confirmed a cult attack at the Rivers State University, which left one person dead.

A final year student of the Department of Agriculture, identified as Prince Tuakabari, was shot and killed on Monday evening around NDDC Hostel in the university, which saw many students scampering for safety.

Spokesman of the command, DSP Nnamdi Omoni, told newsmen that there was a shoot-out between two rival cult groups inside the varsity premises where a student was shot and later died in the hospital. He added that the Chief Security Officer of the university has been invited to offer more details on the incident.

“We have confirmed the incident and I can tell you that it was a cult attack. One student who is from the Ogoni part of Rivers was shot. He didn’t die immediately because he was rushed to the hospital where he later died. We have deployed our men to the school to forestall any reprisal and the Commissioner of Police has ordered investigation into the incident,” he said.

More security personnel have been mobilized within and around the premises of university over the tension arising from the killing of the final year student. The Chief Security Officer of the university, Mr. Ephraim, assured that security measures have been put in place to forestall further attacks, just as he disclosed that academic activities have not been disrupted because of the incident.

Governor Nyesom Wike has meanwhile, issued a query to the Vice-Chancellor, Prof. Blessing Didia, over the shooting. Wike in a statement by his Special Assistant on Electronic Media, Simeon Nwakaudu, demanded answers for what led to the violence. The governor also queried the Vice-Chancellor over recent complaints of “sorting within the university system.”

The statement demanded a response from the VC in writing within 48 hours.

The attack in the Rivers State University campus is happening three days after the launch of a new security outfit in the state, Operation Sting.