The Imo State Police Command has arrested a suspected gun-runner allegedly supplying ammunition to kidnapping syndicates operating within the state.
The Commissioner of Police, Audu Bosso, disclosed this during a press briefing on Friday, stating that the suspect’s arrest was made possible following the earlier apprehension of members of a kidnapping gang who revealed their source of weapons during interrogation.
In a related operation, police operatives also arrested two suspected kidnapping kingpins identified as Confidence Vitalis (28), from Ukugba in Ohaji/Egbema Local Government Area of Imo State, and Ishiaya Rejoice (32), a native of Emuoha in Rivers State.
According to the police commissioner, the arrests were carried out after a coordinated follow-up operation at a suspected kidnappers’ hideout located within the Egbema River creek. During the operation, security operatives successfully rescued a kidnap victim held by the syndicate.
Bosso explained that intelligence gathered from the rescue mission led to the capture of the kingpins, whose confessional statements further guided operatives to other criminal hideouts, resulting in additional arrests and recoveries.
Items recovered during the operation include one AK-47 rifle, four AK-47 magazines, sixteen rounds of 7.62mm ammunition, three locally fabricated guns, sixteen live cartridges, one empty Beretta magazine, twenty rounds of GPMG ammunition, a human skull, and other suspected criminal charms.
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Further investigations linked the gang to the recent killing of two personnel of the Imo State Homeland Security at Umuguma in Owerri West Local Government Area during an attempted abduction.
The police commissioner added that efforts are ongoing to track down other fleeing members of the syndicate.
In another development, acting on credible intelligence, police operatives stormed the Obiakpu swamps in Ohaji/Egbema Local Government Area, where they recovered a large cache of ammunition.
The recovered items include 346 rounds of live ammunition, comprising 122 rounds of AK-47 ammunition, 148 rounds of M16 rifle ammunition, and 76 rounds of 9mm Beretta pistol ammunition.
Seven magazines were also recovered, including four AK-47 magazines and three M16 magazines.
The Imo State Police Command reaffirmed its commitment to sustaining operations aimed at dismantling criminal networks and ensuring the safety of residents across the state.
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