…Arrests 32 Suspected IPOB Militants

Troops of Operation Udoka, the joint security task force, have successfully rescued six kidnapped victims in Enugu State and arrested 32 suspected members of the proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) and its armed wing, the Eastern Security Network (ESN).

Among those rescued were two reverend sisters, identified as Ukwluaba Ogochukwu and Florian Amrdia. The victims were freed unharmed around 7:30 a.m. on Thursday following a coordinated operation involving the Nigerian Army, the Police, local vigilante groups, and forest guards.

Sources disclosed that the kidnappers, overwhelmed by the pressure from pursuing security forces, abandoned their captives in the Nkwo Okwutu forest in Nsukka Local Government Area, near the Enugu-Kogi border.

Other rescued individuals were identified as Ugwan Likani, Ezema Goodluck, Ukwuaba Esther, and Chekueuche Odo. All the victims were promptly taken to the Catholic Hospital in Emene for medical evaluation and have since been reunited with their families after a formal debriefing.

In a related operation, between 3:10 a.m. and 5:30 a.m., troops raided suspected criminal hideouts linked to IPOB/ESN in the communities of Mmaku, Ugbo Afam, Ugo Nenwe, and Ugbonabo in Enugu State, leading to the arrest of 32 suspects.

According to sources, the raids were based on credible intelligence, particularly linking several of the suspects to a recent attack on a police patrol team from the Mbanabo Division.

Ten of the arrested individuals are believed to be high-profile operatives involved in previous attacks on the Awgu Divisional Police Headquarters and the Inyi Division.

The Commissioner of Police, Enugu State Command, deployed the Commander of the Distress Response Squad to lead the joint tactical operation. The team included personnel from the Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) unit, the Counter Terrorism Unit (CTU), the Police Mobile Force (PMF), and other specialized units.

Investigations are ongoing to determine the level of involvement of the suspects, with a view to prosecuting those found culpable.

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