A mild disagreement over car parking spaces involving
lawyers and operatives of the Directorate of Security Service (DSS), disrupted the
sitting of Magistrates' Court in Awka on Friday.
.
We gathered that the disagreement started when operatives of
the DSS who were on an emergency assignment, could not access the road passing
through the court premises.
Angered by the development, the operatives were said to have
sent for the owners of the vehicles and allegedly assaulted one of them.
Disturbed by the commotion outside the premises, the courts
promptly adjourned sitting ``for security reasons''.
An eyewitness told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) that the
security operatives, who drove in a green Peugeot vehicle, were provoked by the
manner vehicles were parked by the lawyers.
“The courts were in session when we started hearing loud
voices of people shouting outside; we rushed out and saw a lawyer being
manhandled.
``The situation attracted the sympathy of other lawyers
present in court, who rushed out and rallied round to rescue their colleague,”
a source said.
According to the source, the DSS operatives also reinforced
with two armed officials, who threatened to deal with anyone that came close.
``The tyres of some of the vehicles were deflated, a
situation that only worsened the confusion,'' the source said.
Narrating his ordeal, one Ndukwe, a lawyer said he was
called out by a female police officer to come and remove his car, which she
claimed had blocked passage.
``But as I made to open my car, two people started
assaulting me; one used a machete while the other, who held a gun, used his
hands to drag me.
``The mere parking of vehicles on a normal busy arena
shouldn’t have warranted this type of assault,'' Ndukwe fumed.
Although, the matter had been reported to the police, Ndukwe
said that he was not satisfied with the way the state Commissioner of Police,
Mr Hassan Karma, handled the case.
“The matter should be documented; the police should carry
out their investigations and charge the matter to court,'' he said.
Confirming the incident, the State Police Public Relations
Officer, Mr Uche Ezeh, said that some lawyers had lodged a formal complaint on
the matter, but added that the issue was later resolved by the Commissioner of
Police (CP).
“The two parties shook hands in the commissioner's office,
where the CP reminded them that lawyers and security operatives were partners
in progress and should not be fighting,” Ezeh said. (NAN)
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