A tense atmosphere pervades Umualumaku community in Ehime Mbano Local Government Area (LGA), Imo State as fear of reprisal attack mounts following a recent attack by gunmen on security operatives.
An attack unleashed by some gunmen on security operatives in the community on Tuesday had resulted in the death of no fewer five members of the state’s Joint Task Force (JTF).
The attack, which claimed the lives of two NSCDC officials, two soldiers and one police officer, according to a police report, has raised concerns about the security situation in the area.
The police had launched a manhunt for the errant gunmen immediately the incident occurred on Tuesday, with spokesperson for Imo State Police Command, Henry Okoye, revealing that the Commissioner of Police, Mohammed Barde, had ordered the deployment of personnel to the area with a mandate to apprehend the perpetrators of the heinous act.
A police source said operatives had been deployed in Umualumaku and neighbouring communities in a bid to ensure that the attackers do not escape.
“It is important to retrieve the bodies of the personnel, which I learnt had been done. So, the next operation is to comb the area for the gunmen. They must pay for their crime,” he said.
A resident, who preferred not to be named, said the gunmen must have planned the attack.
“It looks very coordinated. The gunmen were probably already positioned for the attack before the arrival of the security operatives,” he said.
However, this was not the first time the security personnel had to suffered such casualties. Early this year, five police officers were killed at Ngor Okpala junction.
Police had blamed the outlawed Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) and Eastern Security Network, its armed wing, for rising attacks in the region while IPOB repeatedly denied any involvement in such killings.
Providing insight into the killings, the Inspector General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun, said the security agents affected by the “senseless act of violence”, including police officers, the military, personnel of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), and the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) were “diligently responding to a distress call from the area which turned out to be fake, and targeted at luring them into the ambush.”
Egbetokun, however, assured the public that the police were fully committed to collaborating closely with other relevant authorities to conduct a thorough and comprehensive investigation into the heinous act while relentlessly pursuing the cause of justice.
He assured that the Force would redouble its efforts to bring the culprits to book and guarantee the safety of security personnel and the safety of the state.
Panic grips residents
The latest incident has continued to create panic among the residents of the local government area as many are fleeing their residence for fear of reprisal.
Our correspondent gathered that the community had been deserted over fear of arrest by the security operatives.
The youths are leaving the community in droves for fear that the police would arrest them. Only a few elderly people are said to have remained because nobody is sure of how the police or combined team of military personnel will react.
One of the youths, Kelvin Umuchima, said: “No vehicle is plying the area again because there were reports that more soldiers were on their way to the area.
“This has led to some residents, particularly the youth, to flee the local government area for fear of reprisals from security agents,” he added.
Destruction of property:
Already, there have been reports of soldiers destroying buildings and property in the area. Eyewitnesses told our correspondent that several shops, stores and other structures worth millions of naira were destroyed by angry security personnel who were on a mission to fish out the perpetrators of the dastardly act which is still a puzzle to many as to how the armed security personnel were ambushed and killed in such a grotesque manner.
Emmanuel Magbeahurike advised the police not to cause panic in the people while chasing the culprits as any indiscriminate or biased arrest may create more problem than solution.
A chieftain of the community appealed to security personnel to stop destroying the property of the residents as the hoodlums do not live in the community.
According to him, “the bandits are in the forests because the area has thick terrain that can provide escape route for criminals.”
Population and geography
Ehime Mbano LGA has a land area of 65 square miles (169 km2) and a population of approximately 204,340 people as of 2015. The local government area is known for its Aba Branch Market, which is an important economic hub in the region. The capital of Ehime Mbano is Umuezeala with various topographic features, including hills, valleys, and plains which provide the criminals easy route for escape.
To address the security challenges in the area, experts have suggested that law enforcement agencies should understand the relationship between topography and crime, use crime mapping software, apply place-based policing, and introduce risk terrain modeling (RTM) techniques that use geographic information system (GIS) data to create maps of areas where crime is more likely to occur.
A cyber security expert, Dr. Mark Odimegwu, said areas with complex topography such as hills, valleys and dense forests can provide criminals with natural cover and escape routes, making it more difficult for law enforcement agents to apprehend them.
He said: “Unique topography, such as caves, abandoned buildings or remote areas, can serve as hiding places for criminals, allowing them to evade detection and continue their illegal activities.
“Criminals may choose to operate in areas with unique topography that provide them with a vantage point or easy access to potential targets, such as high-rise buildings, bridges or tunnels.
“Areas with challenging topography such as steep slopes, dense vegetation or narrow alleyways can hinder law enforcement efforts, making it more difficult for them to navigate and apprehend criminals.
“Unique topography can make it challenging for law enforcement agents to monitor and gather intelligence on criminal activities, as it may require specialised equipment or resources to access and observe these areas.”
He advised the agencies that provide security to understand the relationship between topography and crime, which he said can help them to develop more effective strategies for crime prevention and response.
“This includes the use of crime mapping software which allows agencies to track the types of crime and their locations, enabling them to allocate resources more efficiently and target specific areas for intervention.”
He also said that law enforcement agents can use topography to prevent crime by mapping crime data, adding that analysing crime data and mapping it onto the topography of an area can help identify crime hotspots and patterns, allowing law enforcement to allocate resources more effectively.
He said the law enforcement agencies should also apply place-based policing, focusing on addressing the underlying factors that contribute to crime in specific locations.
“By identifying the features of the topography that contribute to criminal activity, law enforcement can develop targeted interventions to reduce crime in these areas.
“Involving or collaborating with the community in the crime prevention process can help law enforcement gain a better understanding of the unique topographic challenges and opportunities in a given area.
“This collaboration can lead to more effective strategies for addressing crime and improving public safety.”
He regretted that the security agencies have always preferred to focus on individuals rather than risky places. This, he said, cannot help to improve police-community relationships, as it is less likely to result in discriminatory or biased policing.
“This, in turn, cannot increase witness participation and improve clearance rates for crimes that do occur.
“If you notice what is happening in the area now, the fear of reprisals and the destruction of property have already disrupted the daily life of the people and raised concerns about the safety and security of the community,” he said.
While condemning the attack, he appealed for more careful approach to fishing out the culprits to give room for people to volunteer information.
A former governor of Anambra State, Mr. Peter Obi, said that such a level of callousness from criminal elements must not be tolerated in the country.
Peter Obi commiserated with the Nigerian Army and the Nigeria Police Force over the horrible incident.
In a post that he shared on his verified Twitter page on Wednesday, he wrote: “Such a level of callousness from criminal elements must not be tolerated in our society. I condole with the army and the Nigerian Police force.”
Gov visits crime scene, vows to fish out killers
The governor of the state, Hope Uzodimma, has visited the scene of the attack, promising that government would make efforts combat criminality in the state. Uzodimma gave the assurance when he visited the scene of the attack.
The governor, who was accompanied by two security chiefs in the state, expressed sadness over the dastardly act. He assured that “the state government, in collaboration with security agencies, will fish out the perpetrators to bring them to book.”
Uzodimma appealed to the leaders and people of the communities in the area to avail the government and security agencies of vital information that could help in the investigation and immediate arrest of the suspects.
He also prayed for God’s mercy for the victims and the fortitude for the families to bear the loss of their loved ones in the incident.
The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) chieftain and governorship candidate, Samuel Anyanwu, also condemned the attack.
Speaking to our correspondent, Anyanwu said: “It is very unfortunate that that happened. I feel very sad and commiserate with the army, police and other security personnel in that attack.
“I plead with our people, particularly the youth, to shun violence and embrace peace.”
The Labour Party gubernatorial candidate in the last elections, Senator Athan Achonu, who cancelled his governorship rally scheduled for Owerri West LGA on the day the attack took place, called on the Federal Government to end the killings in the state.
The attack came after weeks of lull in the activities of ESN, which has been launching attacks on government assets and security operatives in the Southeast, especially since 2021. Though they have denied involvement in the killings carried out so far in the state and across the region, many people are finding it difficult to believe their innocence, particularly because of the experiences they had to undergo during the sit-at-home period ordered by IPOB upon which many people are still scared to come out on Mondays till date.
The governors of the region have also asked the residents to ignore the Monday sit-at-home order by a faction of IPOB loyal to Finland-based Simon Ekpa.
The Nation recalls that the detained leader of the group, Nnamdi Kanu, abolished all forms of sit-at-home in the Southeast and declared that every Monday in the region be observed as Economic Empowerment Day (EED).
To maintain their stance on non-violent posture, the group in a statement by its Media and Publicity Secretary, Emma Powerful on Thursday, condemned the Ehime Mbano massacre. He said: “Such reckless attacks and shedding of blood are not needed to achieve Biafra freedom in our territory.
“The Biafra agitation championed by IPOB since 2012 has been totally peaceful until the Nigeria government started sponsoring splinter groups in order to blackmail IPOB and Mazi Nnamdi Kanu.
“IPOB doesn’t encourage people to murder or waste innocent people’s lives because lives are sacred and must be preserved and protected.
“We encourage Nigeria security to use their intelligence prowess to fish out the perpetractors.
“Nevertheless, we in IPOB condemn the siege and attack on the Southeast by the police and military and other Nigeria security forces.
“Nigeria must dismantle illegal roadblocks that they have set up across the Southeast Region to be extorting from motorists.”
According to him “those behind this latest attack on security personnel are working with the perpetrators of that unnecessary attack in order to blackmail IPOB and Mazi Nnamdi Kanu. This has been their mode of operation for the past couple of years, and particularly now that the case they instituted against Mazi Nnamdi Kanu at the Supreme Court is approaching for consideration.”
