A joint task force comprising personnel of the Anambra State Police Command and troops from the 302 Artillery Regiment of the Nigerian Army have neutralized three suspected members of the outlawed IPOB/ESN.
According to a statement signed by DSP Tochukwu Ikenga, Police Public Relations Officer of the Command and made available to newsmen in Onitsha on Monday, the operatives also arrested two suspects.
Ikenga said that at about 02:20 a. m, gunmen suspected to be IPOB/ESN attacked Awada Police Station in Idemilli North Local Government Area of Anambra, using Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) and automatic firearms.
“In response to the attack, police operatives engaged the hoodlums jointly with troops from 302 Artillery Regiment of the Nigerian Army, in a gun duel, and three members of the outlawed IPOB/ESN were fatally wounded.
“Three Kalashnikov rifles and one Automatic Pump Action gun were recovered from them.
“Other items recovered from the assailants included a brown Lexus 330 with registration no. GWA 415BB ABJ, one unregistered KYMCO motorcycle suspected to be stolen, charms, and other incriminating items.
“During a mop-up operation by police and military operatives, two male suspects reasonably believed to have participated in the attack were apprehended.
“Regrettably, four police operatives paid the supreme price while a section of the station, one police patrol vehicle, and three exhibit vehicles parked in the premises were set ablaze by petrol bombs thrown into the station by the assailants,” he said.
The statement further said that the Commissioner of Police in the state, Mr. Echeng Echeng ordered the immediate deployment of all the command’s operational/investigative assets to track down fleeing members of the murderous gang.
Echeng further appealed to residents of Awada and the good people of Anambra to remain calm as the police, in collaboration with sister agencies, would not rest on its oars until the criminal elements tormenting the state were brought to justice.
