By Okey Maduforo Awka
Twenty four hours after the Court in Finland sentenced the leader of Autopilot killing squad , Simon Ekpa to six years imprisonment the youths in Anambra state and the Agunechemba Security Squad is said to have commenced manhunt of his gunmen.
According to a source the youths had approached some members of Agunechemba Security Squad to comb the border towns of Anambra state which includes Ogbaru,Ayamelum Orumba South, Ihiala and Awka North local government areas .
It was gathered that some of the gunmen had fled their camps on hearing that their leader had been convicted and that they are fast relocating to neighboring states in the South East.
An eye witness who pleaded anonymity for fear of being fished out by the gunmen narrated that one of the camps at Owerezukala in Orumba South local government area has been deserted by the gunmen since Monday yesterday to an unknown destination adding that those that attack farmers can no longer be seen.
“There is a camp at Owerezukala where they stay and operate from but this morning we saw no one and we suspect that it is as a result of the judgement against their leader in Finland”
“Before now , they would drive round the town harassing people and asking for money but we did not see them and most of the youths in our place have been searching for them to flush them out ” he said.
At Awka North borders with Enugu state a similar information filtered in that the suspected gunmen had fled some of the camps for fear of being arrested by Agunechemba and the community youths .
When contacted the Special Adviser to Gov Charles Soludo on Community Security Prince Kenneth Emeakayi is yet to comment or confirm this development .
But the Public Relations Officer of the Agunechemba Security Squad Mr Nweke Nweke however explained that the job of the security outfit is not targeted at a particular set of miscreants adding that the operations of the outfit has nothing to do with any court judgement but to ensure peace and maintain law and order.
“We are not targeting any set of lawless people but to maintain law and order and it has nothing to do with any judicial pronouncement”
“Community Policing is the duty of everyone and if the youths are desirous of fishing out bad eggs then they have the support of the state government but they should also be mindful of not implicating innocent people ” he noted .
Police Public Relations Officer SP Tochukwu Ikenga noted that “the Command had continually encouraged community policing and “they have our backing, but they do not have the right to carry out any form of prosecution or taking the laws into their hands ”
He advised that any suspicious person found in the communities should be taken to the nearest police station for further investigations.
