The recent violence in the Nnobi and Nnewi communities has been strongly condemned by Anambra State Commissioner of Police, CP Nnaghe Obono Itam, who has vowed to bring the perpetrators to justice.
This incident, which involved an abduction and a subsequent gunfight, resulted in the deaths of three individuals, including a vigilante operative, and left two others injured.
In a statement released on Tuesday by the Spokesperson for the State Police Command, SP Tochukwu Ikenga, Itam expressed his outrage over the incident.
He labeled the assailants as cowards and promised an unyielding manhunt to capture them.
The statement read, “The Commissioner of Police, CP Nnaghe Obono Itam has ordered a manhunt operation on the assailants and vows to get justice for the heroic act of the murdered vigilante operative and others. The Commissioner condemned the killings in the strongest possible terms, describing the killers as cowards who have ‘murdered sleep.’ He consoles the families of the deceased and vows to get justice for the victims.”
According to the statement, the tragic events began on Monday when security operatives were pursuing suspected kidnappers who had attacked a burial ceremony in Nnewi and abducted a person in a red Highlander around 1:30 p.m.
The suspects were followed to Nnobi, where they engaged in a gunfight with the police. During the exchange, a vigilante operative was killed, and stray bullets struck two bystanders.
“The armed men, operating in a red Highlander jeep, abducted a citizen in Nnewi at about 1:30 p.m. on June 17, 2024, and were trailed to Nnobi, where they engaged security operatives in a gun battle. During the gun duel, one of the security operatives was fatally hit by a bullet, and due to the indiscriminate shootings by the hoodlums in an attempt to escape, two innocent passersby were also fatally struck,” the statement said.
Upon arriving at the scene, the police found five injured individuals who were quickly taken to the hospital.
Sadly, three of the victims, including a 22-year-old woman, were declared dead by medical personnel, while the other two are undergoing treatment.
“The Police Responding Team at the scene recovered the bodies of the victims and took them to the hospital, but regrettably, three of the victims, including a 22-year-old lady, were confirmed dead by the doctors on duty, while two others are currently receiving treatment,” Ikenga said.
Earlier reports from PUNCH Metro indicated that gunmen had invaded the Nnewi community in Nnewi North Local Government Area and the Nnobi community in Idemili South LGA of Anambra State on Monday. Sources, who spoke anonymously, reported that numerous individuals sustained injuries as the attackers, believed to be enforcing the Monday sit-at-home order, fired indiscriminately upon arrival.
“The gunmen arrived in three vehicles and went straight to a popular hotel at Nnewichi (name withheld). One of the persons in the hotel at the time they attacked was abducted by the gunmen,” sources said. “The gunmen shot sporadically into the ground while the bullets were flying all around the hotel’s premises. Mobile phones and other valuables were collected from the victims the gunmen met in the hotel.”
Itam has urged the public, especially those who witnessed the incident, to provide any information that could aid in the ongoing manhunt.
“Further updates will be provided as the investigation continues,” Ikenga’s statement concluded.
