Two graduating students of Imo State Polytechnic have been reportedly burnt to death inside their hostel by suspected gunmen.
Illustrative photo
According to a shocking report by Vanguard, two graduating students of Imo State Polytechnic, Umuagwo in the Ohaji/Egbema local government area of the state, were reportedly burnt to death last Wednesday.
It was learnt that the students who were set ablaze had completed their Higher National Diploma (HND) examination and were looking forward to going for the mandatory National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) before tragedy struck.
A student disclosed another version of the story surrounding their death, saying it was linked to armed robbery attack, and recounted that after robbing the inmates of their valuables at gunpoint, the two unfortunate students were tied in their room and set ablaze by the hoodlums.
“There was an armed robbery attack in the hostel of the deceased students. Unknown armed hoodlums stormed the hostel Wednesday night and robbed the inmates.
“We were told that the two students were equally robbed, tied in their room and set ablaze by the rampaging armed men, before fleeing the scene”, the student said.
Meanwhile, the Public Relations Officer (PRO), of the institution, Darlington Oparaocha, confirmed the incident to newsmen. “It is true that two of our students have been reported dead. The incident occurred in a hostel close to the school,” Oparaocha said.
He added that the school management was yet to ascertain if the students died because of cult related activities or armed robbery.
“We can’t say definitively if they died of cult related activities or sheer armed robbery. Their bodies have been deposited in a nearby morgue,” the PRO said.