Hope Uzodinma, Governor of Imo State, has said unidentified gunmen who carried out a series of attacks on various law enforcement facilities in the state on Monday also attempted to invade the state Government House, Owerri.

Governor Uzaodinma said this after he convened an emergency state security council meeting at the Government House, Owerri, on Monday.

The gunmen carried out dual attacks on the Nigerian Correctional Service (NCS) facility and the Imo Police Command Headquarters, both in Owerri, the Imo State capital, on Monday.

Speaking after the meeting, the governor noted that the attackers were, however, repelled by the security agents at the gate of the Government House.

He noted that some of the 1,844 inmates freed by the gunmen had started returning voluntarily while others had been rearrested.

He said: “It has been an eventful day today being Easter Monday in Imo as yet to be ascertained gunmen attacked the correctional service centre, setting some facilities ablaze and releasing some inmates,” the governor said.

“The gunmen were at the police headquarters where they destroyed 38 vehicles and also set the facilities ablaze.

“Efforts by the gunmen to penetrate into the Imo State Government House were not successful as they ended up shooting sporadically at the entrance gate.”

Governor Uzodinma said a panel of enquiry had been set up to look into the incident with a view to finding out the circumstances surrounding the attack.
He said government and security agencies have been ordered to fish out the perpetrators.

He assured residents of the state of their safety, assuring that security agencies will be more proactive to forestall a reoccurrence.