There was a pandemonium on Monday in the Ughelli area of Delta State as gunmen numbering five laid siege to the palace of Ughelli Kingdom.

The Queen 11 of the kingdom, Queen Rachael, narrowly escaped after the gunmen ambushed her in front of the palace along Isoko Road in Ughelli North Local Government Area of the state.

An orderly attached to the palace, Inspector Bello Chinye, also narrowly escaped the incident but sustained a gunshot wound.

It was gathered that the and monarch’s wife and her driver had gone to a new generation bank along the Isoko Road and were returning to the palace when they were accosted by the gunmen.

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A source said, “The gunmen upon sighting the policeman, opened fire on him and shot him on the hand. It was during the melee that ensued that the queen also ran into the palace for safety while the hoodlums also fled the scene.”

The Police Public Relations Officer in the state, Oneme Onowakpoyeya, who confirmed the incident on Tuesday, said it was an incident of attempted robbery and not kidnapping.

“We were told it was attempted robbery not kidnap. However, irrespective of their intentions, they didn’t succeed,” Onowakpoyeya said.