Four persons were shot dead at the weekend by unknown gunmen in Port Harcourt, Rivers State capital.

The inci­dent occurred along Eastern-Bypass area of Marine Base.

The latest tragedy came a few hours before the five persons were killed on Saturday night, along a popular hotel in Oroworukwo community in D/Line.

The assailants, suspected to be cultists, stormed a restaurant close to the bridge along the road and shot dead four persons, while others sustained bullet wounds.

A source said bodies of the victims were evacu­ated by policemen, who arrived at the scene shortly after the bandits had escaped.

Similarly, an unidentified woman, was kidnapped yesterday at about 1:30 pm in Echue Street, Mile 2, Diobu axis of Port Harcourt, by gunmen.

The victim was attending one of the churches in the area, when she was abducted by suspected com­mercial kidnappers in her jeep.

A source said the suspects escaped through Echue waterfront with the woman into the creeks in a motorised fibre (speed boat), after police chased them, forcing them to abandon the car.

Meanwhile, a suspected cultist simply identified as Peter, was buried on Saturday at the Port Har­court Cemetery.

There was tension in the Town area of Port Harcourt. Peter was murdered on February 14, this year when he attended a party organised for the girlfriend of a fellow cultist.

•Adapted from a Daily Sun report. Photo shows gunmen.