By Emeka Ilozor
The Anambra State Homeland Security outfit, Agunechemba Security Squad, says it has dismantled suspected gunmen’s camps in Orumba North and Orumba South Local Government Areas, recovering two General Purpose Machine Guns (GPMGs) and a locally fabricated rocket launcher.
The outfit’s Publicity Secretary, Mr. Nweke Nweke, disclosed this in a statement issued on August 2 in Awka, attributing the success of the intelligence led operation to sustained surveillance of criminal hideouts across the Anambra South Senatorial District.
Nweke said the recovered weapons had been handed over to the Nigerian Army at the office of the Director of Operations in Awka as part of ongoing collaboration between state and federal security agencies to tackle insecurity.
The Director of Operations of Agunechemba, Chief Chinenye Ihenko, who represented the Governor’s Special Adviser on Community Security, Prince Kenneth Emeakayi, described the operation as a significant milestone in the fight against banditry, kidnapping and other violent crimes.
Ihenko said the operation showcased the professionalism and tactical competence of Agunechemba operatives, adding that no personnel was injured despite coming under attack by the suspected gunmen, who fled with varying degrees of injuries after abandoning the weapons.
He reaffirmed the outfit’s resolve to sustain operations against criminal gangs in Orumba North, Orumba South, Ihiala and Ogbaru Local Government Areas, while commending Governor Chukwuma Soludo for strengthening the state’s homeland security architecture.
The Majority Leader of the Anambra State House of Assembly and head of Agunechemba’s Investigation Unit commended the state government’s sustained investment in homeland security, noting that the Anambra State Homeland Security Law was yielding positive operational results.
Representing the Commander of the 302 Artillery Regiment (General Support), Onitsha, Col. Buteus M. Yakubu, Lt. P. O. Idowu conveyed the appreciation of the Chief of Army Staff, Lt.-Gen. Waidi Shaibu, to the state government for supporting Agunechemba and assured of the Nigerian Army’s continued collaboration in tackling insecurity across the state.
The ceremony concluded with the formal handover of the recovered weapons to the Nigerian Army in the presence of security officials, members of the Anambra State House of Assembly and other stakeholders, underscoring the commitment of the state government and security agencies to restoring lasting peace and security across Anambra.
Emeka Ilozor is of the Ministry of Information and Value Reformation, Anambra State
