A fight between two traders at Utako market in Abuja turned deadly on Wednesday, claiming the life of a man simply identified as Ifeanyi with the police taking into custody Eze, the combatant.
A visit by Persecondnews correspondent to the market uncovered that the fatal dispute reportedly started over a disagreement regarding the demarcation of the boundaries between the two adjacent shops owned by Ifeanyi and Eze.
The disagreement quickly intensified, leading to a physical confrontation that ended in tragedy with Ifeanyi collapsing and ultimately losing his life.
Ifeanyi was rushed to the NNPC Hospital in Utako, but unfortunately, he was pronounced dead on arrival by the doctor on duty.
The body was taken to the Utako Division Police Station for profiling, and subsequently, to the Wuse General Hospital mortuary, but unfortunately, the hospital reported that there was no available space.
His body was eventually taken to the mortuary at the Federal Staff Hospital in Jabi.
Meanwhile, Eze, the trader involved in the altercation, is currently in custody at the Utako Division Police Station.
Timothy, an eyewitness told Persecondnews that the two traders had a long-standing feud that dated back to several months.
“They have been at loggerheads for a very long time. In fact, they even got into a physical altercation just last week.
“The Ebonyi State union has attempted to mediate and settle their disputes on multiple occasions, but unfortunately, their efforts were unsuccessful,” he said.
When contacted on phone, Mr. Nelson Onwuemeudo, the Chairman of the market, informed Persecondnews that he had not yet arrived at the market and therefore was not in a position to comment on the incident as he did not witness it.
When Persecondnews reached out to the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Police Command, Assistant spokesperson ASP Patrick Kator said the command is “actively investigating the incident and will issue an official statement shortly.”
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