Thursday, August 20, 2026

Police arrest four ESN members planning attacks on security operatives in Anambra

The Anambra Police Command has raided and dislodged the secessionist group in the state following a credible intelligence report.

• June 18, 2024
Police officers
Police officers used to illustrate the story [Photo credit: THISDAYLIVE]

The Anambra Police Command has raided and dislodged the secessionist group in the state following a credible intelligence report.

The command’s spokesperson, Tochukwu Ikenga, disclosed this in a statement in Awka on Tuesday.

Mr Ikenga said a police-led joint security force intercepted four members of the military wing of the proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) and the Eastern Security Network (ESN) at Ufuma, Orumba North Local Government Area of the State.

“The arrest is following information received over time of planned attacks on security agents and innocent citizens by the dreaded group,” he said.

Mr Ikenga said Maduabuchi Nwafor, alias Omenkpo, a 32-year-old native of Ufuma, was one of the four suspects arrested.

“Nwafor has been identified as one of the herbalists who prepare charms for the group and uses his shrine for initiation ceremonies and as a meeting venue for criminals.

“Also, another suspect, unnamed, who is already assisting the police with vital information, confessed to being one of the gunmen dispatched by the group to enforce the illegal sit-at-home order on May 30,” said the police spokesperson.

The Commissioner of Police in Anambra, Nnaghe Itam, said the police have ordered investigations to identify insurgent hideouts in the state.

Mr Itam assured members of the public in Anambra that the police command would continue to serve the people selflessly and protect its information’s sources from harm.

(NAN)

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