The joint effort between the police, military, and vigilante groups in crime-fighting is paying off in Anambra, says an official.
Security agencies have killed seven gunmen in Anambra State, south-east Nigeria, during separate operations on Wednesday.
The Commissioner of Police in the state, Echeng Echeng, disclosed this on Wednesday during a press conference in Awka, the state capital.
Mr Echeng said five of the hoodlums were suspected members of the outlawed Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), while two others were suspected kidnappers.
How they were killed
The police commissioner said the five suspected IPOB members were killed when joint security operatives accosted them in Akwaihedi, a community in Nnewi South Local Government Area of the state.
Akwaihedi, a community in Anambra State, shares boundaries with communities in Imo, another state in the South-east.
Mr Echeng said the hoodlums were heading to Anambra State on a motorcycle for a planned attack before the operatives intercepted them.
“The operatives engaged the assailants (and) neutralised five of the gang members,” he said.
Two rocket launchers, four AK-47 rifles, one automatic pump action, four magazines, eight live ammunition, police berets and charms were among the items recovered from the gunmen, according to the police.
The commissioner said in a separate operation on the same day, police operatives attached to Rapid Response Squad (RRS) Unit, Awkuzu, also killed the two suspected kidnappers while attempting to rescue two kidnap victims in the suspects’ hideout in Ifite, Ogbunike, a community in Oyi Local Government Area of Anambra State.
He said the operatives stormed the suspects’ hideout following a tip-off about their criminal activities in the area.
A black Lexus SUV and several security camouflages comprising police and military uniforms were the items recovered from the suspects, the police said.
Mr Echeng said the synergy among various security agencies, including the police, military and vigilante operatives, has helped “immensely” in the fight against hoodlums in the state.
“For us today, this is a big positive one that happened to avert a major planned attack in the state,” he said.
The police commissioner urged residents of the state to continue to support the security agencies and the state government in their efforts to provide security in the state.
Increased attacks
Like other states in Nigeria’s south-east, security has deteriorated in Anambra State with frequent attacks by armed persons.
The attacks often target government officials, security agencies and their facilities.
The latest incident comes barely two days after police killed two gunmen along Umusiome Nkpor, a community in Idemili North Local Government Area of the state.
Hours ago, gunmen, suspected to be IPOB members enforcing a sit-at-home order, shot a chief security officer of a commercial bank at Nkwo Market in the Ihiala Council Area of the state.
The Nigerian government has accused the IPOB of being responsible for the deadly attacks in the region. But the group has repeatedly denied any involvement in the attacks.
The secessionist group is leading the agitation for an independent state of Biafra which it wants to be carved out from the South-east and some parts of South-south Nigeria.