By Izunna Okafor, Awka
A combined team of security operatives in Anambra State has demobilized a suspected gunman during a fierce gun battle in the state, while also rescuing a kidnap victim from the hands of the abductors.
Loading ...The incident, according to a press statement by the State’s Police Public Relations Officer, SP Tochukwu Ikenga, happened in the late hours of Saturday, July 12, 2025, around Amaokpala axis, where operatives of the Police-led Joint Security Force from the Forward Operating Base (FOB), Aguata were on a night visibility patrol before encountering the armed hoodlums.
SP Ikenga, in the statement, said the operatives were attacked by the criminal elements on sighting the patrol team, a development that led to a gun duel that lasted for about forty minutes.
He said the security operatives, however, responded and overpowered the hoodlums during the exchange of fire, resulting in the fatal wounding of one of the criminals, who was later confirmed dead in a nearby hospital, where his body was deposited in the morgue for preservation.
According to him, the operation also led to the successful rescue of a 26-year-old female kidnap victim, who was debriefed and given necessary medical attention before her eventual reunification with her family.
Items recovered from the criminal gang during the operation, according to the police spokesman, included: one pump-action gun, 11 live cartridges, one ash-coloured Toyota Camry Sedan with registration number Lagos EPE 208 FK, one Police belt, a carton of Chelsea sachet alcoholic drink, a Zenith Bank ATM card, an axe, a small Tecno mobile phone, a packet of cigarettes, assorted charms, and the cash sum of ₦2,700.
Reacting to the successful operation, the Commissioner of Police, Anambra State, CP Ikioye Orutugu, commended the gallantry of the operatives, and reaffirmed the Command’s commitment to making Anambra State uninhabitable for criminals and all forms of crime.
SP Ikenga further assured that further efforts were ongoing to track down the fleeing members of the criminal gang and ensure that they are brought to justice.
