GUNMEN suspected to be assassins, Thursday night, murdered the Ideato North Local Government Area of Imo State chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Mr Sunny Ejiagwu. The deceased, popularly known as ‘Ohaneze’, was one of the 27 council chairmen inaugurated on July 23 by Daniel Nwafor, the newly- elected chairman of the APC in the state. The Commissioner of Police in Imo, Mr Dasuki Galandanchi, who confirmed the murder in a telephone interview with newsmen in Owerri, said that Ejiagwu’s corpse had been deposited in a mortuary. According to Galandanchi, the incident took place along Akokwa Road in the Ideato North Local Government Area. “There is no preliminary suspect but the investigator would find out but the blood of the innocent would expose the killers,” the commissioner said. The state governor, Rochas Okorocha, has pledged a N20 million reward for anyone with credible information that will lead to the arrest of those behind the assassination of the deceased. The Imo governor described the murder as “purely a case of mindless assassination, looking at the circumstances of the killing.”
According to him, “considering the fact that nothing was taken away from the man or removed from his car, it should not have been therefore a case of armed robbery, and looking too at the fact that there was no sign of resistance or struggling between the killers and the victim and the method of shooting, the issue of kidnapping should also be ruled out.” He said, “the man’s head and body were shattered with bullets following several gunshots just to make sure that he had no chance of being revived, and that could only be done by wicked assassins.” The governor who spoke when political and community leaders from Ideato North Council Area came to officially inform him about the murder, assured that the killers of the APC chieftain popularly known as Ohaneze would soon be apprehended and made to “face the consequences of their wicked act”. His words: “Last night we received a very disturbing news about the untimely death of one of our party leaders in Ideato North by name Sunny Ejeagwu (Ohaneze) who was murdered at about 8.00pm last night (Thursday). We have come to a very painful moment of this our political life, to say that those who are behind the killing must be brought to book.
“From what we have heard so far, from reports reaching us about the way he was murdered, it’s obvious, that was not an act of armed robbery and there was no traces of any item removed from him and there was no traces of any attempt to kidnap him rather, that’s an assassination, outright assassination with the number of bullets that ran through his head and body. It shows that this is an assassination. “This is painful and Ohaneze has no reason to die now. He has just been elected the chairman of the APC in Idearo-North and he is one that is loved by all, but for someone to have gone to take his life, we condemn it in its entirety and we have requested the security agencies to fish out the killers. We as a government must ensure that these culprits, these wicked souls must be brought to book. We must never allow innocent souls to be destroyed or even people being killed just for nothing. “I’m here placing a prize tag that whoever can give any useful information as to the killers of Chief Ejeagwu, this government will release the sum of N20m immediately just to make sure we arrest whoever killed this innocent soul. The security agencies have been directed and mandated within the shortest possible time to produce the killers of this man. We are asking all Imolites to go about their businesses without fear, as security arrangements are on top gear to ensure the security of lives and properties in the state.
“This is a similar incident that happened many years ago where in the same Akokwa, a notable politician was killed and it looks like it has become the character of Ideato-North to kill around that area whenever politics comes on. I’m yet to classify this killing as politically motivated killing. But even if that is the case, the perpetrators must be brought to book, and we shall use this to show an example that we mean business to fish out the men of the underworld, “Therefore, I and the state government have sent our collective sympathy and heart-felt sympathy to the wife and children and the family of Chief Ejeagwu for this undeserved, unmerited and wicked death that he had to go through in the hands of his murderers. But everyone must know that life is sacred and no one has the right to take another’s life, and whoever does that, whether now or later, must pay the prize, “So, I sympathize with the family and government will be with this family in this their period of trials and pains. Once more, let me assure all Imolites, all members of APC that we must bring to book, the killers of Ohaneze, and not too far from now”. The state chapter of the party, has also condemned in strong terms the gruesome murder of Ejiagwu.
The party warned that it will not condone politically motivated killings in the state, while urging security agencies to fish out the perpetrators of the dastardly act and make them face the wrath of the law. Briefing newsmen, Friday, at the party secretariat in Owerri, the newly elected state Chairman of the party, Mr Daniel Nwafor, described the killing as barbaric and unwarranted, adding that “the Imo political space has been peaceful and we must resist any attempt to introduce political killings in the state”. “APC condemns such killing. This should not be happening when our party known for its peaceful existence and has been preaching peace , we cannot start to have political killings. Politics should be played without bitterness, people should be allowed to join any party they wish to join because the Nigerian constitution provides for freedom of association.” While narrating how the incident occurred, Nwafor said that the gunmen had trailed the victim from Owerri where he attended a meeting of the party on Thursday to Akokwa, his home town. Nwafor narrated that, “the victim after noticing he was being trailed increased the speed of his vehicle but unfortunately, his assailants caught up with him, double crossed him as he fell into a gutter in the process, leaving the gunmen to shoot him at close range and he died immediately on the spot.