Blessing Ibunge in Port Harcourt
Port Harcourt Electricity Distribution (PHED) Plc has begun prosecuting its former employee and another employee of Rivers State High Court Port Harcourt for unauthorized operations on the company’s facilities and suspected murder of a Mr. Eugene Damini.
The victim is said to have died accidentally at the Mopol 19 junction in Port Harcourt on October 3, 2021.
In a statement yesterday, PHED’s head of corporate communications, Mr. John Anonyai, the suspect, “Mr. Uche Nwale, Mr. Chike Ugo, and Mr. Choko Thankgod, who are PHED staff, conspired to illegally supply wires at the premises of Mama Tin Bakery Pole relocation service. The shop is located opposite Mopol 19 Barracks, GRA, Phase 4 in Port Harcourt. The incident happened when they illegally tampered with and interfered with the PHED distribution network and facilities."
The matter was heard by SH Aprioku, Judge of the State High Court. THISDAY has collected that the former PHED staff has been hired by the boss of Mama Tin Bakery to relocate a telephone pole on PHED's 11KV line at a reported cost of N100,000.00.
It is reported that in order to achieve their so-called purpose, the suspects hired a Hiab driver, Mr. Paul Oyil, to help them lift and reposition the pole with his Hiab. In turn, Oyil also hired the services of his car boy, the late Eugene Damini (victim), who was electrocuted at the site of an unauthorized operation.
Anonyai once revealed, “When they climbed up the poles and removed the insulators, cross arms and other fixed-line electrical accessories, Hiab drivers began to lift the poles and transfer them to a new location that had been dug in a new location. In the hole.
"However, he inadvertently lifted the telephone pole above the safe limit, and the lifted telephone pole came into contact with the live PHED 33KV line, causing Eugene Damini who illegally guided and held the pole to be electrocuted and killed.
"Former employees of PHED know that the management of PHED has repeatedly warned employees and the public about the dangers of illegal operations and the risks of any kind of activities around the company's high-tension lines or similar facilities."
PHED's managing director, Dr. Henry Ajagbawa, recently warned in a media meeting in Port Harcourt that the company will arrest and prosecute any employees or others found to have committed energy theft or vandalized company facilities.
In another development, residents of the Okporo community in Port Harcourt arrested suspects who tried to sabotage the PHED yellow and blue armored cables opposite the Okporo police station. Residents in the community found a damaged cable from the suspect and handed them to the police at Okporo Police Station.
The community intervened to prevent the so-called vandals from stealing 500 square millimeters of armored cables (yellow and blue) from the substation.
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