A Sky policeman (escort) working with Shell Petroleum Development Company was on Thursday shot dead by a group of gunmen along Ahoada-Ndele-Rumuji axis of the East-West road.

Two of the company’s employees were also said to have been abducted by the gunmen, who came out of the bush to stop the vehicle travelling from Yenagoa in Bayelsa State to Port Harcourt, Rivers State.

Sky policemen are special security men, who work for corporate organisations in the country.

It was gathered that the Sky police was driving the escort vehicle when the bandits struck, shooting him first before abducting the two other persons.

The incident, which happened at about 4:00pm, caused panic among motorists plying the road, forcing many of them to flee the area.

A source from the oil firm confirmed the incident but added that efforts were being made by family members to ensure that those abducted regained their freedom.

“Two of our colleagues were kidnapped on Thursday. They were coming back from Yenagoa when the gunmen came out from the bush. The driver of the escort vehicle, who is a Sky police officer, was killed.

“The other two are still with them (kidnappers). Friends and families are trying to see how they (victims) can be released,” the source said.

The State Police Public Relations Officer, Mr Nnamdi Omoni, also confirmed the incident to our correspondent, adding that investigation had begun to ensure that the victims regained their freedom.

Meanwhile, abductors of four employees of the National Emergency Management Agency are demanding the sum of N40m as ransom for their release.

It was gathered that the kidnappers were asking for N10m each as ransom for the four NEMA workers, who were taken away on Tuesday in Abua-Odual Local Government Area of Rivers while on official duty.

The gunmen had shot and injured one of the workers, who later escaped after pretending to have died during the attack.

Those in the custody of the bandits are Julius Alunomoh, Damian Egwu, Olisa Ojukwu and Chidiebere Wendy, a lady.

The victims were abducted while trying to get the number of farmers to benefit from the National Emergency Agricultural Intervention Fund covering 18 states in the country.

NEMA’s Director Disaster Risk Reduction, Vincent Owan, said steps were being taken to ensure the release of the kidnapped workers.

In another event also on Thursday, gunmen attacked an Abau/Odual council commercial bus, killing its driver, a policeman and robbing passengers of their belongings along the East-West Road.

It was gathered that the driver, who was identified as Jonadab Sokolo, was conveying passengers in a Toyota Coaster bus from Port Harcourt to Abua when they were attacked.

One of the passengers, who spoke to our correspondent on condition of anonymity, said the gunmen were dressed in army camouflage when they flagged down the bus in the middle of the road.

She said, “The gunmen stopped the bus on the middle of the road and ordered the driver to come down from the bus which the driver obeyed.

“After a while, the gunmen ordered the driver to open the passenger door for some of them to gain access to the bus but the driver refused.

“They shot him in the neck, including a policeman that was moving closer to the scene.

“The gunmen forced their way in and robbed us of all our valuables and left.”

Also, five suspected cult members were shot dead by members of a local vigilante group known as Security and Peace Advisory Committee in the Emohua area of the state.

It was learnt that a man, who was planning his relative’s funeral, had invited the vigilante group to help ensure that the event slated for Saturday was not disrupted by cult gangs when trouble began after the victims demanded for an undisclosed amount of money to allow the funeral to hold.

This led to a shootout and eventually the death of the five young men.

When contacted on the matter, Omoni, confirmed the incident, adding that he had not been briefed on the number of casualties.

 PUNCH.