Operatives of the Azikiwe Police Division in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, on Saturday, rescued a woman, Maria Kobara, from being lynched by an angry mob after she was wrongly accused of abducting a 12-year-old girl at Owo Street, Mile 2, Diobu.
An eyewitness, Nelson Ogiriya, said the incident began when Kobara was taking the girl to a church on Eagle Island at the request of the child’s mother. Suspicion arose after another woman stopped them and questioned her relationship with the child.
According to Ogiriya, the woman contacted the girl’s father, who subsequently reached out to his wife to verify the arrangement. Although the mother confirmed that she had asked Kobara to take the child to church, some residents had already accused her of child theft and physically assaulted her before the clarification was received.
He said police officers arrived at the scene during the attack and took those involved to the station.
Confirming the incident, the spokesperson of the Rivers State Police Command, ASP Grace Iringe-Koko, said officers attached to the Azikiwe Police Division intervened and rescued the woman from the mob.
She explained that investigations showed a relative of the child’s father had raised an alarm, drawing the attention of residents and passers-by.
The police spokesperson noted that despite Kobara’s repeated explanations that she knew the child’s mother and had her permission to accompany the girl, the crowd ignored her and subjected her to assault while accusing her of attempting to abduct the child.
She added that officers promptly stepped in and prevented what could have turned into a tragic case of mob justice.
