Igbo Radio

By Izunna Okafor, Awka

It was a very emotional moment in Nnewi, Anambra State, on Friday, as the remains of late Mrs. Chiamaka Isabel Okeke (née Okonkwo), the woman who was mistakenly shot dead operatives of the Agụnechemba/Udo Ga-Achị security outfit, were laid to rest amid tears and grief.

The burial ceremony, photos and videos of which have gone viral on social media (courtesy of Nnewi City), was witnessed by family members, friends, students, sympathizers, and residents who gathered to pay their final respects to the deceased.

Mrs. Okeke, a mother of four young children, was fatally shot on April 15, 2025, at Ibeto Junction in Nnewi when the operatives of the Agụnechemba security outfit were trying to clear traffic jam at the junction.

This reporter, Izunna Okafor, gathered that the security operatives, who were stuck on the usual hold-up at the Junction on that fateful day, were firing gunshots into the air to disperse road users in order to clear the hold-up; and in the process, Mrs. Okeke, who was on her own, was dangerously hit by stray bullets from the security operatives, which resulted in serious injury and bleeding that also caused her death there and then.

Her death generated a chain of public outrage that eventually led to the identification, arrest, and detention of the security personnel involved — a 36-year-old man from Ebonyi State, who was said to have recently joined the security work before the incident happened. However, the body of the deceased had also remained in the mortuary since then, till her recent burial.

Mrs. Okeke's funeral rites commenced in the early hours of Friday with the departure of her body from the Nnamdi Azikiwe University Teaching Hospital mortuary. The body made a brief stop at her father’s compound in Okpunoeze, Uruagu, before proceeding to her husband’s residence in Akaboezem for a lying-in-state.

A funeral Mass followed at 10 a.m. at Our Lady of Fatima Catholic Church, after which she was interred at her husband’s compound amid tears and grief. An outing Mass has been scheduled for tomorrow , Sunday, November 30, 2025, at Our Lady of Fatima Catholic Church.

The family described her passing as sudden, painful, and deeply shocking, noting that her death left a vacuum that cannot easily be filled. Through the outpour of tributes from mourners, was also remembered as a devoted wife, loving mother, dependable sister, and a woman of strong character whose life was cut short in her prime.

Emotions ran particularly high in reaction to the sight and photos of her grieving young children, two of whom were visibly present during the burial. During the burial ceremony, the residents and close relatives also expressed worry and raised concerns about the fate of these young children she left behind, especially regarding their education, welfare, and long-term support.

Netizens have also questioned what support structures, if any, are being put in place by the government at both the state and local levels to cater for the children’s upbringing and schooling following the loss of their mother under such tragic circumstances; even as many re-echoed the call for justice for the soul of the young mother, whose life was cut short.

Photos and videos from the burial ceremony (Credit: Nnewi City)