Imo State was thrust into the spotlight of horror and heroism as police smashed a deadly terror syndicate, arresting 15 suspects linked to IPOB/ESN terrorism, kidnapping, murder and armed robbery in a sweeping one-week operation.
Unveiling the shocking details on Monday in Owerri, the Commissioner of Police said the coordinated crackdown—backed by sister security agencies and local intelligence—ripped open a web of violence that had haunted several communities across the state.
The operation led to the rescue of a kidnapped victim and a trafficked child, while security forces recovered an astonishing cache of weapons and criminal tools, including AK-47 rifles, a LAR rifle, pump-action guns, hundreds of live ammunition, improvised explosives, machetes, walkie-talkies, laptops, mobile phones, counterfeit currency, suspected Indian hemp, criminal charms and IPOB/ESN insignia.
The most chilling moment came with the arrest of five notorious kidnap kingpins from Orsuobodo in Oguta LGA—Chinonso Ugochukwu (aka Bob Adam), Chibuzor Okafor, Ohaka Chukwuka, Ezekwe Chizoba and Ezekwe Chinyere.
Police said the suspects were behind a reign of terror marked by kidnappings, executions and intimidation. During interrogation, Bob Adam, identified as an IPOB/ESN sub-commander, allegedly confessed and led operatives into a forest where multiple corpses were exhumed from shallow graves, exposing what investigators described as a killing field.
