By Okey Maduforo Awka.
At least four persons were confirmed dead and scores of persons suffered various degrees of bullet injury yesterday evening when alleged rival cult group stormed Nawfia Community in Njikoka local government area of Anambra state shooting indiscriminately .
Few days before the incident the Anambra Police Command had launched a raid on the area and it’s neighboring towns and arrested two suspected cultists who were planning a rival war against the opposing rival group but some of the members fled and are still at large.
Confirming the incident the President General of Nawfia Progressive Union Chie Daniel Okoye said ;
“This evening, I received with deep shock the tragic news of an attack at the Afor Market Junction in Nawfia Community”
“The incident resulted in multiple casualties, caused by unknown assailants who carried out this senseless act of violence”
Okoye condemned the incident stating that it is an a front to disrupt the peace in the Community.
“Istrongly condemn this heartbreaking incident and the attempt to disrupt the peace of our beloved community. I have already contacted the relevant security agencies, and investigations are underway to uncover those responsible”
“I appeal to all Ndi Nawfia to remain calm, stay vigilant, and continue to cooperate with security operatives as they work tirelessly to restore normalcy and ensure our safety” he urged .
Also the Anambra Police Command in reaction to the killing through the Police Pubic Relations Officer , SP Tochukwu Ikenga , noted that some of the gang members had been arrested based on intelligence information available to the it but was quick to add that the killing may not have been unconnected with the feeling cultists on the said day of the raid .
“It will be recalled that operatives of the Command attached to the Special Anti-Cult Squad, Enugwu-Ukwu, had, four days earlier, acting on credible intelligence about a planned rival cult confrontation, arrested two dangerous suspects and recovered a firearm from them. The arrested suspects have been assisting the Police with valuable information aimed at preventing further cult-related violence within Awka and its environs”
“Despite these proactive efforts by the Command operatives, some members of the same gang, on the evening of 7th December 2025, operating in a black Lexus Jeep with registration number yet unknown, stormed Afor Nawfia Market and opened fire indiscriminately”
” The violent attack resulted in the fatal injury of four persons, after which the assailants fled the scene”
Ikenga pledged that the Command is neck deep in a manhunt for the fleeing cultists.
“Although the hoodlums escaped before police arrival, preliminary information obtained at the scene has provided useful leads, and the Command is already acting on them to ensure the perpetrators are tracked down and arrested”
“The Anambra State Police Command remains resolute in its determination to rid the State of cultism, violent crime, and all forms of criminality. Further developments will be communicated as investigations progress ” he said.
