Fifteen alleged members of the Indigenous People of Biafra suspected to have unleashed terror at the New Market and Ishieke areas of the Abakaliki metropolis, on Tuesday have been arrested.
In a viral video on Tuesday, the suspects were seen shooting indiscriminately at members of the public including minors while enforcing the sit-at-home order issued by a faction of IPOB.
The incident caused apprehension among the residents of the state as the suspects warned them against coming out of their homes for five days, between July 3 and July 7, 2023.
Speaking on Friday with journalists in Abakaliki, the commissioner of Police in the state, Faleye Olayele, disclosed that among the 15 suspects arrested were two herbalists, Okwudili Otozi and Nnenna Ali.
“They have attacked our area commander and burnt our vehicle. They have been terrorizing the state. On July 4, they came to Ishieke firing sporadically and that was on Tuesday.
“I want to tell you that 15 of them have been apprehended. We recovered arms and charms of different kinds,” he said.
The police boss said the suspects were preparing for another attack on Friday when they were arrested by operatives of the command.
“This shows that our officers are dedicated to their duties; the arrest was made possible by our men through the information we got,” he said.
One of the herbalists, Otozi, however, said he was forced to join the gang.
“I did not know that they wanted to operate in Ebonyi; they came to me and requested for medicine and I gave it to them, after which they forced me to join them to the bush for further preparations.
“Please, I was forced to follow them after I gave them the medicine,” he claimed
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