In response to the pipeline explosion that occurred in the Obitti community in the Ohaji/Egbema Local Government Area of the state on Wednesday and resulted in the deaths of five people, the Imo State Police Command established an investigative team.
Henry Okoye, the command spokesperson, revealed that the state commissioner of police, Aboki Danjuma, has opened an investigation into the event that resulted in the deaths of five vandals in the village.
According to him, the main goal of the investigation was to stabilize the situation and put an end to the state’s ongoing economic sabotage.
Certain vandals reportedly went to a rubber estate in the Obitti village and tried to tamper with crude oil by excavating through a pipeline there.
Five people were killed when the pipeline caught fire while someone was trying to steal the crude oil.
The charred remains of several burn victims were depicted in a video that our correspondent observed going viral on social media.
The video features a voiceover describing the reason behind the explosion at the rubber estate, along with footage of an articulated vehicle that the vandals set on fire.
According to our correspondent, the LGA had previously experienced pipeline explosions and oil theft.
At least one hundred persons were killed in an explosion at an illicit refinery in Obokofia, Egbema, in 2022.
