- Seven other members of the local security outfit were arrested for various crimes, including murder
The Rivers State Police Command has confirmed the arrest of Felix Nwaobakata, the commander of a local vigilante group, found with two human skulls and other body parts.
Grace Iringe-Koko, the spokesperson for the State Police Command, announced in a statement issued in Port Harcourt on Wednesday that the suspect was arrested at his hideout in Omoku, the headquarters of Ogba-Egbema-Ndoni Local Government Area.
In addition, seven other members of the local security outfit were arrested for various crimes, including murder.
Iringe-Koko stated that Nwaobakata, the Commander of the ONELGA Security and Peace Advisory Committee (OSPAC), is a principal suspect in the murder of two brothers in Idu, Ogba-Egbema-Ndoni LGA, on May 1, 2024. The brothers were accused of being kidnappers.
The statement noted that the arrests followed numerous complaints about the operations of OSPAC in various parts of the state, particularly in Ogba-Egbema-Ndoni LGA. The outfit’s operatives had recently attacked a police division in Omoku and clashed with other security agencies.
The statement read, “The Rivers State Police Command has commenced a clampdown on the excesses of vigilante groups operating within the state.
“This follows numerous complaints about the operations of the ONELGA Security and Peace Advisory Committee in different parts of the State, predominantly in Ogba/Egbema/Ndoni LGA, as well as clashes with other Security Agencies by this Vigilante Group.
“On May 9, 2024, Alhaji Usman Seleh, the Chairman of the Hausa Indigenous Group in ONELGA, reported that OSPAC had abducted a member of his group. He proceeded to report the matter to the police. Consequently, the police invited the ONELGA OSPAC Commander, Felix Nwaobakata, who refused to honour several invitations.
“Instead, the OSPAC outfit coordinated an attack on the police division in Omoku but the attack was thwarted as the police repelled them.
“Following this development, Tactical Units of the command stormed the ONELGA OSPAC Camp at Omoku and arrested Cheta Benjamin, Joshua Ekwosa, Innocent Ahiakwu, and four others.
“The ONELGA OSPAC Commander, Felix Nwaobakata, was subsequently arrested in his hideout in Omoku on June 17, 2024 where two human skulls and human bones were found in his possession.
“The arrested OSPAC Commander, Felix Nwaobakata, is also a principal suspect in the murder of two brothers, Collins Ugorji (32) and Newman Ugorji (39), of the Idu Community in ONELGA.”
The brothers were said to have been killed on May 1, 2024, by the OSPAC on the allegation that they were kidnappers.
Their motorcycles were reportedly confiscated, and their bodies taken to the OSPAC secretariat in Omoku.