- His decomposing body was later found by the roadside near the Second Niger Bridge in the early hours of Thursday
Nine suspects have been apprehended in connection with the murder of Justice Azuka, a lawmaker in Anambra State.
Azuka, who represented Onitsha North 1 Constituency in the Anambra State House of Assembly, was abducted on December 24, 2024.
He was kidnapped along Ugwunaobankpa Road in Inland Town, Onitsha, while returning home for Christmas.
His decomposing body was later found by the roadside near the Second Niger Bridge in the early hours of Thursday.
However, the Anambra State Police Command on Friday announced the arrests of the nine suspects in a press statement on Saturday.
According to the Commissioner of Police in Anambra, CP Nnaghe Itam, a joint security team comprising police operatives and Anambra Vigilante Group (AVG) personnel had launched a mission to rescue the abducted lawmaker, only to find his lifeless body.
“Our interaction today is to highlight some of the notable breakthroughs recorded by the Anambra State Police Command on major incidents in the state within the period under review,” Itam said.
“Many of you are aware of the gruesome murder of Justice Azuka, the State House of Assembly member representing Onitsha North Constituency 1 in the Anambra State House of Assembly who was abducted on December 24, 2024, in Onitsha.
“This serious incident motivated the Command to go the extra mile in intelligence gathering and discreet investigation.
“In the early hours of February 6, 2025, at the Second Niger Bridge, the joint security team comprising the police and AVG operatives, on a mission to rescue the abducted State House of Assembly member representing Onitsha North, found his lifeless body at the scene. (May his soul rest in perfect peace.)”
According to him, on the same day the body was discovered, “the command operatives in a joint operation with Anambra State vigilante operatives, acting on intelligence-led information, arrested nine suspects actively involved in this unfortunate incident and recovered two pump-action guns.
“One of the suspects sustained a gunshot injury in his leg during a gun duel with the Police operatives.”
The arrested suspects include: Ugochukwu Onuorah (30); Ikemefuna Ossai (20); Ikenna Orugu (27); Chibuike Obiefuna (19); Chinonso Olisa (19); Chinedu Okoli (21); David Ojini (25); and Peter Sunday (20), described as the most notorious, with a tattoo on his chest reading “No peace 4 d Government.”
The Commissioner also revealed that the command had successfully arrested “one Chidiebere Nwosu, a kidnap suspect in Uruagu, Nnewi, and neutralised some of his gang members that were involved in the attack of Police personnel attached to the Rapid Response Squad after a successful arrest on 3rd October 2024.”
He further disclosed: “We have also neutralized more than 100 notorious criminals and successfully destroyed many criminal camps in Ufuma, Eziowelle, Achalla, Ogbaru, and many other places in the State.”
CP Itam extended his appreciation to the Inspector-General of Police, IGP Kayode Adeolu Egbetokun, “for his guidance and overall support,” and also thanked “the Governor of Anambra State, Prof. Chukwuma Soludo, sister agencies, the media, residents of the State, Anambra State Vigilante operatives, Civil Society Groups, Organisations, and many others for their unflinching support within the nine months that I have spent in the State as the Commissioner of Police.”
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