A middle-aged man identified as Tee Corporal from Yae Town in Khana Local Government Area of Rivers State has reportedly been beaten to death by members of his community.
Youth Leader of Yae Town, Yoo Muele, in an interview with Kristina Reports, disclosed that the tragic incident stemmed from a minor dispute over a palm tree plantation said to belong to the deceased.
According to him, the disagreement, which was initially described as a simple misunderstanding, reportedly escalated into violence, leading to the fatal attack.
“What happened was just a little misunderstanding between the man from Bianu Town, Mr Peter, and Mr Tee Corporal from Yae.
It happened that they had a misunderstanding because of a palm tree plantation.
The young man leased the plantation to Mr Peter for the sum of N150,000.00, and then unfortunately it seems he also gave it out to another person.
So, in the course of demanding a refund, Mr Peter allegedly hired some boys to beat up Tee Corporal, which resulted in his death.”
Muele expressed shock over the development, noting that the situation could have been resolved peacefully without resorting to brutality.
Meanwhile, the publicity secretary of the Khana Youth Assembly (KYA), Godknows Eze, condemned the act, describing it as barbaric and unacceptable.
He urged all parties involved to remain calm and refrain from taking the law into their own hands.
Eze further called on the Nigeria Police to immediately launch a thorough investigation into the incident and ensure that those responsible are identified and brought to justice.
“We are calling on the youths of both communities to remain peaceful while we expect the police to come in and take charge, as this could lead to a breakdown of law and order among the communities.”
As of the time of filing this report, efforts to get an official response from the police authorities were ongoing.