The Anambra State Police Command has arrested members of a criminal gang connected to an attack on the convoy of former Minister of Labour and Employment, Senator Chris Ngige, with two suspects losing their lives during a gun battle with security operatives.
The police described the operation as a significant breakthrough in their ongoing efforts to eliminate criminal activities and safeguard lives and property across the state.
According to the Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), SP Tochukwu Ikenga, operatives of the Rapid Response Squad (RRS), Awkuzu, acting on credible intelligence, laid an ambush for a five-man gang at the Enugwu Agidi junction.
Ikenga said the suspects, believed to be armed robbers and cultists with alleged links to a proscribed secessionist group, engaged the operatives in a gun battle upon encountering them.
“During the exchange, which lasted about two hours, two of the suspects sustained fatal gunshot injuries, while three others escaped with varying degrees of injuries,” the PPRO said.
He added that items recovered from the scene included one T.06 rifle, two pump-action guns, 24 rounds of T.06 ammunition, 15 live cartridges, assorted charms, a cult red beret and a black Toyota Highlander vehicle.
Ikenga further revealed that one of the suspects, before dying, confessed that the gang was responsible for the earlier attack on Senator Ngige’s convoy. The suspect also admitted to being a member of the strike squad of the Vikings confraternity, allegedly carrying out a retaliatory operation following the killing of one of their members by a rival cult group.
Commending the operatives for their bravery, the Commissioner of Police in Anambra State, Ikioye Orutugu, directed them to intensify efforts to track down and arrest the fleeing suspects.
He also urged hospitals and other medical facilities to promptly report cases of individuals presenting with gunshot injuries to the nearest police station.