One person has been killed and a section of Umuahia Timber market along Ahiaeke road in Abia State, set ablaze following a faceoff between traders and vigilantes stationed in the market.
A source in the area said the incident occurred Tuesday morning when the vigilante group tried to implement the order of the State Internal Revenue Board which asked traders who refused to pay N18,000 levy it earlier imposed on them to close their shops.
He said the traders put up resistance when vigilantes came to the market to effect the order, and in the process a trader was shot dead why many others sustained injuries.
The source said the action of the vigilante provoked the traders who retaliated by burning the section of the market where the office of the local guards is located.
Secretary to the State Government, Chris Ezem, in a statement on Tuesday, condemned the incident and asked the police to commence investigation into the incident.
