Police have arrested six members of a notorious criminal gang that have been terrorizing Eziowelle community in Idemili North Local Government Area of Anambra state and its environs for long.
Three pump action rifles, one barreta pistol, ammunition and other incriminating items, were recovered from members of the gang which they used for their deadly operations.
The criminals were rounded up after the state Commissioner of Police, Echeng Echeng, received reports about their criminal activities in the area.
The police were informed that members of the notorious gang have been using an illegal vigilante group to kidnap, rob, intimidate and harass people in the community for long.
They have also broken into homes of prominent individuals in the community, stolen properties, raped female members of their families and kidnapped others, who would later be forced to part with huge sums of money as ransom.
Meanwhile, a prominent man in the area, who claimed to be a pastor also controls his gang that has been indulging in criminal acts in Eziowelle for long with the tacit support of some leaders of the community, who always claim to have contacts with security agencies in both Anambra State and Abuja that will protect them.
These evil perpetrators have made the town so hot that many indigenes, both in Nigeria and abroad, ran away for fear of being kidnapped and forced to pay ransom.
Some of their victims were kidnapped at midnight, taken to offices of some security agencies, where they were tortured, harassed and intimidated into parting with huge sums of money.
However, reports of their criminal activities was received by the Commissioner of Police, Echeng Echeng, and he swiftly directed the Commander of Anti cult Unit in the state, Uche Noah to swing into action and round up all the criminals involved in the nefarious acts.
Their operation was a success because Uche Noah stormed the town in an operation described as ‘unprecedented in execution’ and rounded up the suspects .
Even though they gave the police team stiff resistance and confronted them in an exchange of firepower that lasted for hours.
However, the police team succeeded in routing them and arrested six of their kingpins, while others escaped with serious bullet wounds.
Police spokesman in Anambra State, Tochukwu Ikenga, when contacted, said: “Yes, the operatives raided Eziowellle community and we have six suspects in custody.”
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