Escape Of Notorious "Vampire"; Okorocha places N5m on his recapture

Bullets came from all corners... lawyers, litigants and judges in Owerri, Imo State capital will not forget Friday, January 27, 2017 in a hurry. OluFamous.Com was one of the first platforms that broke the news. It was the day dare devil gunmen stormed the High Court premises in the town and rescued one of their ruthless kingpin, Henry Chibueze, alias Vampire!

His rescue remains a mystery. Consequently, Governor Rochas Okorocha had offered N5m bounty to anybody with credible information capable of leading to the re-arrest of Vampire.

Said to be a native of Nwangele local council area of Imo State, Vampire had been on the wanted list of the police and the Department of State Security, DSS, before he was apprehended.

He was wanted for crimes, including armed robbery, kidnapping and attack on women. The state heaved a sigh of relief when the DSS announced his capture in far away Ohafia, Abia State and paraded him before journalists.

After concluding investigation, the police arraigned him in court and he was remanded in prison.

Last Friday was scheduled for continuation of the hearing of the case and it was the responsibility of Imo State Command of the Nigeria Prison Service, NPS, to produce the suspect in court.

For the law abiding citizens at the High Court premises, it was business as usual.

Meanwhile, according to Vanguard, a Sports Utility Vehicle, SUV, drove into the premises while armed occupants waited patiently for their target.

The scenario changed when the NPS Black Maria conveying over 50 inmates from Owerri prisons arrived. The hoodlums attacked the Black Maria as soon as it parked in the court premises.

Six persons, including prison officials and inmates, were critically wounded, two were feared dead.

A lawyer at the scene of the attacked, said the gangsters were fully prepared for the onslaught.

“The gangsters were fully prepared for the mission to rescue their man, Vampire."

Continuing, the legal practitioner said that there was total confusion in the court premises as the hoodlums fired sporadically from virtually all corners.

“People scampered into safety. Some of the accused persons equally ran for their dear lives. I ran into the female toilet in the Bar Centre”, the lawyer said.

A litigant present at the scene, whose entire body shook as he spoke with Vanguard, described the scenario as “akin to what we see in movies”.

“The [shocking] thing is that the armoured vehicle which was stationed at the entrance of the court remained silent and unmoved throughout the operation”.