By SAMUEL OYADONGHA

Tragedy struck in the early hours of  Saturday at the Swali suburb of Yenagoa, the Bayelsa State capital, as Nigerian Air Force personnel (NAF) allegedly fired a shot which killed a baker while responding to a distress call over armed robbery attack.

The incident occurred along John Igbi Street at about 1a.m. when residents had retired to  bed.

A source told Vanguard that men of the Nigeria Police from the A Division Ovom had, on getting the distress call from the owner of the bakery being robbed, raced to the scene, forcing the hoodlums to take to their heels.

It was learnt that just as the police team was trying to get first hand information from the workers at the bakery, NAF officers, whose base is situated along the street of the incident, also responded to foil the robbery.

The intervention of the latter however allegedly turned tragic, when one of the men of the NAF fired from afar and the bullet shattered the head of one of the bakers, identified as Paul Wisdom.

“The gunshots, which came unexpectedly, made the policemen from A Division, Ovom, who were listening to the complaints of the bakery staff in front of the gate leading into the bakery, to take cover,” a resident said, pointing at the dried blood stain of the victim at the entrance of the bakery where the victim was reportedly hit by the bullet.

The corpse of Paul Wisdom, aged 21, an indigene of Oruk Anam local government of Akwa Ibom State, was deposited  at the Federal Medical Centre, Yenagoa mortuary, while investigation into the incident commenced.

Efforts to the get the comments of the spokesman of the NAF base in Yenagoa, B. Okon, proved abortive but the Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO) of the Bayelsa State Police Command, ASP Eguavoen Emokpai, confirmed the incident. Emokpai, however, said information at his disposal was sketchy.

“It is true that a young man was gunned down today around Swali area.  I don’t have much details now. But we are conducting investigations into the matter,” he said.