One person has been confirmed dead , while three others were injured after suspected militants attacked a passenger bus at Ikot Mkporikpo end of the Abak -Iwukem Road in the Etim Ekpo Local Government Area of Akwa Ibom State .
The Police Public Relations Officer in the state, DSP Odiko Ogbeche , said on Tuesday that the hoodlums shot at the bus when the driver refused to stop after they flagged down the vehicle . He said bullets hit four passengers on the bus , adding that the driver refused to stop in the area because he was afraid . He added that when the driver eventually stopped, one of the passengers had died . The PPRO said the driver of another bus , which appeared at the scene , veered off the road in panic and crashed into a building before the bus caught fire . Ogbeche said , “ The bus belongs to the Akwa Ibom Transport Company and when it was attacked , the bullet hit and injured some of the passengers . One of them was seriously injured but the driver refused to stop at a nearby health centre for treatment . ’ “One of the injured passengers died on the way because the driver was afraid and refused to stop after the shooting incident . He insisted on reaching safety in Aba before stopping for the injured passengers for treatment . ” He expressed worry over the activities of militants on the highway , wondering why they had refused to accept the olive branch extended to them by the state Governor , Mr Udom Emmanuel , who asked them to lay down their arms for amnesty and re - integration. “ But the police are on the trail of the hoodlums with a view to bringing them to justice , ” he added .