The Anambra State Police Command has stepped up operations against criminal groups across the state, arresting 13 suspects in separate operations and recovering firearms, ammunition, suspected illicit drugs, cult insignia and a stolen vehicle.
The Police Public Relations Officer, SP Tochukwu Ikenga, disclosed this in a statement on Tuesday, October 6, 2026.
In one of the operations, police operatives attached to Okpoko Division raided a suspected criminal hideout around Coca-Cola Market on September 30 and arrested 20-year-old Somtochukwu Ezeibe.
A locally made double-barrel pistol, a live cartridge and charms were recovered from him. A subsequent search of his residence also produced a Vikings Confraternity beret and peak cap.
Following information allegedly obtained from Ezeibe, police arrested eight more suspects on October 5. They have since been transferred to the Anti-Cult Unit for further investigation.
In another operation, operatives of the Rapid Response Squad, Awkuzu, working with Agunechemba Vigilante, arrested four suspects over an alleged armed robbery operation in Onitsha.
The suspects—Dennis Ngwu, Elvis Udo Effiong, Femi Adekoya and Chijioke Obinozie—were allegedly linked to a gang that targeted shuttle bus operators and diverted goods within Onitsha. Police said suspected illicit substances were recovered from them.
Preliminary investigation also linked the suspects to the alleged diversion of goods worth about N40 million, while efforts are continuing to establish the full extent of their activities and locate other members of the suspected gang.
Meanwhile, the Command’s Violent Crime Response Unit recovered an abandoned green Toyota Highlander at Ogidi on October 5. Preliminary findings indicated that the vehicle was allegedly snatched from its owner at Ogidi Building Materials on August 16.
The Commissioner of Police, CP Nnanna Oji Ama, said the Command would maintain pressure on cultists, armed robbers, kidnappers and other criminal elements in the state.
He also appealed to residents to provide timely information on suspicious activities, assuring them that such information would be handled confidentially.
