The Anambra State Police Command, in collaboration with the military and other security agencies, has neutralised five suspected members of an armed secessionist gang during a raid on their camp in Ufuma, Orumba North Local Government Area of the state.
The operation, which took place on Tuesday along Umugem Road, resulted in the recovery of four undetonated improvised explosive devices, two AK-47 rifles, one pump-action gun, and a 75-volt battery, among other incriminating items.
The command’s spokesman, SP Tochukwu Ikenga, disclosed this in a statement on Wednesday, attributing the success of the operation to effective coordination among the security agencies.
The statement partly read, “A joint security team comprising the police, military, and other security agencies on January 14, 2025, at about 12:30 pm, carried out an offensive operation against a suspected armed secessionist gang along Umugem Road, Ufuma, Orumba North LGA.
“During the operation, the team neutralised five members of the armed group, while others fled with varying degrees of bullet wounds. The camp was destroyed, and weapons, including four undetonated IEDs, two AK-47 rifles, one pump-action gun, and a 75-volt battery, were recovered.*
The Commissioner of Police, CP Nnaghe Itam, commends the collaboration among the security agencies and seeks greater cooperation from residents to deny these criminal elements the space to operate.”
Ikenga added that efforts were ongoing to apprehend the fleeing suspects, urging members of the community to provide useful information that could aid the security team.
This development comes barely a week after two Catholic Reverend Sisters of the Immaculate Heart of Mary, Mother of Christ, were reportedly kidnapped along Ufuma Road.
The sisters were said to be returning from a vocational association meeting in Ogboji, the same community targeted in the recent police raid.
The police assured residents of intensified efforts to restore peace and safety in the area, promising to provide updates as the operation progresses.
(PUNCH)