At least three police officers were killed when gunmen attacked the motorcade of Apostle Johnson Suleman along the Benin Auchi Road, Edo State, on Friday.
Reports said seven persons including three policemen, were killed during the attack.
Mr Suleman returned from a foreign trip and was heading to a destination in Edo State when the gunmen attacked his convoy around the Auchi area of the state, The Punch reported.
The gunmen reportedly opened fire on the cleric’s convoy, allegedly killing three of his police orderlies and four other yet-to-be-identified persons.
Suleman’s lawyer, Samuel Amune, who confirmed the attack, said the cleric just returned from a programme in Tanzania, adding that he escaped death by a whisker.
Mr Amune said, “He was returning from a journey and he had almost gotten on the shores of Auchi when some assassins attacked him. Three of his police orderlies, among others died. He travelled before and just finished a programme in Tanzania day before yesterday.
“He was returning to Auchi when the gunmen attacked him along Sabingida down to Warake area, and Auchi shares direct boundary with Warake. So, he had passed Warake and was entering the boundaries of Auchi when the attack happened.”
The spokesperson of Edo Police Command,, Chuidi Nwabuzor, has confirmed the attack on the cleric.
The police spox said, “I just heard about it few seconds ago; but I cannot confirm yet. Let me hear from the Divisional Police Officer covering that area.”
