Crime
10 dead as soldiers, youths clash in Imo, soldier stabs creditor to death
UMUAHIA— Less than 24 hours after soldiers and youths clashed in Izombe, Oguta Local Government Area of Imo State which left many dead, no fewer than 10 persons have again, been reported killed and many houses burnt as soldiers from 14 Brigade, Nigeria Army, invaded Amangwu community in Ohafia Local Government Area of Abia State in search of their missing colleague.
Also yesterday, gunmen allegedly attacked a popular police checkpoint located along the Onitsha-Owerri road in Ihiala, Anambra State.
Similarly, a soldier, identified as Saeed Sabo, of the 82 Division, Nigerian Army, Enugu, is now cooling off in police cell for allegedly stabbing a middle-aged man to death in Umuahia.
10 killed, scores missing
Following the military raid of Amangwu community, scores of locals were also reportedly arrested and are yet to be sighted.
The community has been reportedly deserted as locals fled to different locations, abandoning their homes just to stay out of trouble.
The invasion was in the aftermath of an alleged abduction of a yet-to-be-identified soldier, said to be ” on pass in the area”.
The soldier, according to reports, was said to be on leave, and visited his village in nearby Ikwun in Cross Rivers State but got missing at the border between Amuma Ohafia and Amangwu.
It was learned that troops from 14 Brigade were deployed for a rescue operation on the missing soldier.
The soldiers allegedly burnt over 50 houses in the community, while 10 persons were killed, with many others missing.
Sources said the soldiers had also invaded Okon and Amuma with heavy shooting and broke into houses to arrest some youths.
His words: “The problem was with our neighbouring community, Amangwu, but the Army invaded Okon yesterday and burnt 5 houses. They were shooting everywhere. Some of them were using drones to take pictures of the community.
”They returned by 2 am today (yesterday) and burnt another house. They broke into houses and dragged youths into their vehicles. Any youth arrested is tagged a member of IPOB.
”The youths arrested are yet to be seen since their arrest. People are fleeing their homes to the IDP camps. We are now IDPs in our place. We are afraid they may storm the IDP camp in search of youths.”
A resident of Amangwu who spoke on the condition of anonymity, alleged that the number of youths killed in the community was above 20, contrary to the 10 reported by the media.
He said: “What soldiers are doing in Amangwu community amounts to ethnic cleansing. If any youth has committed an offence, the soldiers should arrest him, not burn houses and kill people.
”Everybody arrested is tagged a member of IPOB. Many youths have been killed. Even families who fled Amangwu have been searching for their loved ones. Those whose houses were burnt couldn’t save anything because the soldiers came in the early morning when the residents were still sleeping.
”Some people were lucky to escape through the bush path because the Army blocked the area searching for people. Amangwu is now a ghost town.”
Efforts to contact the Army Public Relations Officer, 14 Brigade, Ohafia, Lt. Innocent Omale, were unsuccessful as he did not respond to calls and a text message was sent to his mobile number unreplied.
However, a top military source in the Brigade informed that soldiers were currently on operation in Ohafia, fighting the rising insecurity in the area, but denied burning houses and killing innocent people.
The source, who pleaded not to be quoted, confirmed that there was a military operation in the community in search of the missing soldier, and against criminal elements who had allegedly taken over the area.
The source denied the killing of locals and destruction of houses, explaining that only shrines used by criminals were destroyed.
Said the source: “There is an ongoing operation in search of a missing soldier in Amangwu general area. Only shrines belonging to the criminals in the enclaves were affected.
”The Nigerian Army is a professional Army that respects law-abiding citizens and fishes out those with criminal intent disrupting the peace-loving people of Ohafia and its environs.
“We must fish out the criminals in our immediate society for peace to reign.”
On the justification for the alleged invasion, the source said: “But the criminals being executed in the criminal enclaves are irrelevant. Human skulls in different shrines? Mini Barracks in the bushes by these criminals? Missing innocent souls is (sic) of no concern? The Nigerian Army must fish out criminals in our society.”
IDP camps spring up in Ohafia
The IDPs, comprising women and children, are now quartered in primary schools, community halls, and churches in some communities yet to be attacked by the soldiers.
Some IDPs who spoke to Vanguard, stated that they escaped with nothing as the soldiers burnt their houses, adding that They lacked clothing, food, and medicine .
They urged the federal and state governments to call the soldiers to order.
Gunmen attack police checkpoint in Anambra
In a similar development, gunmen yesterday attacked a police checkpoint in Anambra State.
The attackers, who allegedly came from the neighbouring Mgbidi Local Government Area of Imo State, opened fire on the policemen on duty, who took to their heels.
Amid the confusion, passengers traveling to Owerri from Onitsha and Onitsha to Imo State had to make u-turn.
The development caused traffic gridlock in the area as the travellers parked their vehicles at nearby Nkwo Ogbe market, Ihiala, and at the Mgbidi end in Imo State.
Workers at Anambra-owned Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu University who were on their way to the office, had to abandon work for the day and fled home.
Residents of the area also fled into a nearby bush for safety, while authorities of the nearby Abbott Boys Secondary School, Ihiala, directed students to immediastely leave the school premises.
The state Police Public Relation Officer, PPRO, Mr. Tochukwu Ikenga, could not speak on the matter, but a police source confirmed the attack.
The source could, however, not confirm if there were casualties, although he said that the state police command had dispatched a special squad to Ihiala to quell the situation.
Police detain soldier for stabbing creditor to death
In a related development, te Police in Abia have detained a soldier for stabbing a man to death.
The victim, Uchenna Offor, 34, from Olokoro in Umuahia South, was said to have demanded that the soldier paid for goods bought previously on credit before another one would be sold to him.
An eyewitness said: “The soldier attached to a Chinese construction firm came to buy something on credit around Umuahia Railway station but the victim demanded payment for goods bought previously on credit.
”In the ensuing altercation, the suspect was said to have used the bayonet of his gun on the victim, stabbing him in the chest.”
The eye witness said the victim who slumped after he was stabbed, was immediately rushed to the Federal Medical Centre, Umuahia, where he was certified dead on arrival.
Police Public Relations Officer, PPRO, in charge of Abia State command, Geoffrey Ogbonna, a Superintendent of Police, confirmed the incident.
He said investigations into the matter had commenced, assuring that justice would be served.
Dismantle Mgbidi army checkpoint, CSO tells CDS, CoAS, Imo govt
However, a civil society organisation, Security Situation Room, has drawn the attention of the Chief of Defence Staff, Chief of Army Staff and Imo State government to the army checkpoint of ‘extortion and oppression’ at Mgbidi, by St Joseph’s Catholic Church/Ray Jacobs Boarding School, Imo State.
Convener, Security Situation Room, Douglas Ogbankwa, in a statement in Abuja, yesterday, said: “We, through our observers noticed with dismay the long, unconscionable and reprehensible gridlock, artificially spurned by extortionist army personnel, who force commuters to cross to the other side, with the attendant danger of fast moving vehicles on the ever busy Owerri- Onitsha Express Way, a clear case of ethnic profiling, as prohibited by Section 42 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria , 1999 (As Amended), as majority of those that ply that road are of Igbo extraction.
“But in the hot bed of insurgency and banditry in the North, the Nigerian Army does not deploy such selective and targeted method used to humiliate people without any reason whatsoever. They collect money from those buses who do not disembark and keep all in a callously created gridlock, of which the only goal is to extort the poor commuters, who are mostly those perceived as the poor and the weak, while those in air conditioned private vehicles are given fast passes.
“There is no search conducted. Even at that, they need a warrant on each commuter in their name to conduct a search according to the law. The Security Situation Room condemns the actions of these brigades , masquerading as Army officials and we restate that there is freedom of liberty and freedom of movement as enshrined in Chapter 4 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria , 1999 (As Amended), as the actions of these brigades are a flagrant infringement of the Fundamental Human Rights of the citizens who ply the road”.
A young man suspected of attempting to steal cables from a transformer was found dead after reportedly being electrocuted along Trademore Road in Lugbe, Abuja, in the early hours of Friday.
The deceased was reportedly found crouched and lifeless near the transformer, with his body said to have become stiff, suggesting he may have been electrocuted when power was restored.
Residents said there had been no electricity supply in the area on Thursday night before the incident occurred.
The discovery attracted a crowd of residents, who expressed concern over the increasing activities of cable vandals in different parts of the Federal Capital Territory.
Rasheed Ogunyemi, a resident of Iddo Seriki along the Airport Road, said residents in his area often contribute money to repair their transformer, only for vandals to return and cut the cables.
The FCT Police Public Relations Officer, SP Josephine Adeh, confirmed the incident, stating that the deceased’s body had been evacuated and deposited at a mortuary in Gwagwalada for autopsy.
More than 60 worshippers are feared to have been kidnapped from the Central Mosque in Dekara town, Borgu Local Government Area of Niger State, during Jumu’at prayers on Friday.
The incident occurred when suspected terrorists, said to be operating in large numbers, stormed the mosque while the prayers were ongoing.
According to sources, the attackers fired several shots before rounding up some of the worshippers and taking them into the surrounding forest.
A resident, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said Borgu Local Government Area witnessed several security incidents on Friday, including attacks on three communities.
“So many things happened in Borgu LGA on Friday. Terrorists attacked three communities, including Dekara. In Dekara, they went to the Central Mosque while Jumu’at prayer was ongoing and kidnapped more than 60 people. But they did not injure anybody,” the resident said.
The Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Ijumu Local Government Area of Kogi State, Oyewole Mayowa Solomon, has died after reportedly collapsing during a party reconciliation meeting in Iyara, the council headquarters.
Solomon reportedly slumped suddenly while participating in the meeting convened on Friday by a former Ijumu council chairman, Funsho Olumoko, as part of efforts to resolve internal disagreements and promote unity among APC stakeholders in the area.
An eyewitness said the incident caused confusion among participants, who immediately attempted to revive the party chairman before rushing him to a hospital in Kabba.
He reportedly died shortly after arriving at the hospital.
The development shocked party leaders and other stakeholders who had gathered for the reconciliation meeting, which was aimed at strengthening the APC ahead of the 2027 general elections.
The meeting was expected to bring together party leaders, ward and local government executives, women and youth leaders, as well as government appointees from the 15 wards in Ijumu.
The incident occurred amid renewed efforts by APC stakeholders in the council to resolve longstanding disagreements and restore unity within the local chapter.
Earlier in the month, party leaders in Ijumu had endorsed President Bola Tinubu and Kogi State Governor, Usman Ododo, for second terms.
However, that gathering was reportedly disrupted by disagreements over the leadership of the local government, with Solomon and some other officials said to have walked out of the meeting.
Olumoko, who organised Friday’s reconciliation meeting, had previously been mandated by the Ijumu Consultative Forum to facilitate dialogue among political stakeholders in the council.
Solomon’s sudden death is expected to create fresh uncertainty around the ongoing reconciliation efforts within the Ijumu APC, coming barely two weeks after stakeholders renewed calls for unity ahead of the 2027 elections.
The cause of his death had not been officially disclosed as of the time of filing this report, while efforts to obtain an official reaction from the APC were ongoing.
Tension and grief have gripped the political community in Enugu State following the suspected murder of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) Chairman in Udenu Local Government Area, Chisimdiri Emmanuel Ngwu.
Ngwu, described as one of the longest-serving members of the ADC in the state, was reportedly found dead in the early hours of Wednesday, August 19, 2026, under circumstances that have raised concerns among his family, friends and political associates.
A family source told our correspondent that Ngwu woke up early on Wednesday, left the house and never returned alive.
The source said the family became worried after they noticed he was missing, only to later discover his lifeless body outside the compound.
“We woke up and didn’t see him, only to discover his lifeless body in front of our compound,” the source said.
The source further alleged that scratches were found around Ngwu’s neck and that his neck appeared to have been twisted backwards, raising suspicions about the circumstances of his death.
The incident has sparked concern within the ADC in Udenu and the wider political community in Enugu State, with calls for security agencies to thoroughly investigate the matter and bring anyone found responsible to justice.
Meanwhile, two persons have reportedly been arrested in connection with the incident.
Their identities and the specific circumstances surrounding their arrest were not immediately known as of press time.
Ngwu’s death has since sent shock waves through the ADC, with party members and associates mourning his death and demanding a transparent investigation into the circumstances surrounding the incident.
The Anambra State Police Command has uncovered the circumstances surrounding the alleged murder of a 56-year-old man, Mr Kelechi Madu, in Awkuzu, Oyi Local Government Area, two days after he was reported missing.
The development was disclosed in a statement issued on Friday, August 21, 2026, by the Police Public Relations Officer, SP Tochukwu Ikenga, who said the breakthrough followed a coordinated search and investigation by police operatives, local vigilantes and members of the deceased’s family.
Madu was reported missing by his wife on August 18, after he reportedly left home on the evening of August 17 and failed to return.
According to the Command, the search for the missing man took a grim turn later that day when his wife returned to the police station to report that he had been found dead in a nearby bush at Umuobi, Awkuzu.
Police operatives immediately mobilised to the scene, where they found Madu’s lifeless body with a deep axe wound to his head. His remains were subsequently evacuated and deposited at a hospital mortuary for preservation.
Following the discovery, detectives intensified their investigation and arrested the deceased’s 32-year-old friend, Mr Ifeanyi Nwankwo, who allegedly confessed to being involved in the planning of the killing.
Preliminary findings by the Command indicated that Nwankwo allegedly obtained money from Madu through fraudulent means, claiming he would assist him in acquiring a piece of land.
Police alleged that the suspect subsequently engaged two other persons to eliminate Madu in an attempt to conceal the alleged fraudulent transaction and prevent the victim from recovering the money.
The Command said two other suspects linked to the alleged plot were also arrested, bringing the number of persons apprehended in connection with the case to four.
The Commissioner of Police, Anambra State Command, CP Nnanna Oji Ama, psc, mnips, has directed investigators to intensify the probe and identify every person involved in the alleged conspiracy and murder.
The CP vowed that all persons found culpable would be brought to justice.
The Command, through Ikenga, assured residents that it would continue to strengthen intelligence-led policing and community partnerships to prevent violent crimes, uncover criminal networks and ensure that perpetrators face the full weight of the law.
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