| News Articles | |
Anambra Police Poise to Crack Nnobi-based Criminal Gangs
New York, USA --- Anambra State Police Command under leadership of Mr. Uzor Amakulor (CP) appear poised to crack Nnobi-based criminal group which may be working in tandem with national criminal syndicate. Nnobi is a small town in Idemili South Local Government Area, Anambra State, Nigeria. The Anambra Police and Anambra State Governor Peter Obi had always maintained that criminals, especially, armed robbers, extortionists and kidnappers wrecking havoc in the state do, in most cases, work hand-in-hand with relatives and neighbors of their targets. Both the police and State Governor Peter Obi had encouraged public cooperation to track down criminals, especially violent ones. And that cooperation is now helping law enforcement agencies in Anambra Police to crack a criminal gang that specialize in identity fraud, extortion, violent destruction of private properties, threat to life and kidnapping threats. The interesting part of this Nnobi case currently under investigation is the finding so far that, village-based (local) criminal groups in Anambra State working in tandem with another group based in northern part of Nigeria used all sorts of strategy to lure US-based Nigerians home with grander extortion and threats of kidnapping. Knowing that members of the family targeted comprise of a veteran of United States Army and citizens of United States, the group in telephone threats bragged that they kill officers of Nigerian army and police during operation and will like to raise their profiles by killing US army and US citizens, as well. Unfortunately for the gang, the family targeted were not intimidated by the gangs' warnings of dire consequences should their threats be reported to the police. The family went ahead and reported the matter to law enforcement agencies in Anambra State which had since commenced investigation. With renewed zeal to crack-down on violent crimes in Anambra State, detectives from Anambra State C.I.D. have made some arrests and had gotten useful confessions and statements from the suspects, and are reportedly working hard to uncover the methodology and all tentacles of the syndicate, according to sources close to the investigation. Our sources also reveal information indicating that gang members may have deliberately misled the police, withheld vital information from the police when asked, or deliberately provided false and inaccurate information to the police officers investigating the case, very serious violation in police investigation. Our sources reveal that like the State Governor and certain security had earlier indicated, some members and neighbors of family targeted (and in this case the Ezekwenna family) had colluded with hardcore criminals based at Nnobi and Northern part of Nigeria to conceive and execute their criminal acts. The Anambra State Police Command appear determined to use this Nnobi case to show the society that the command is capable of cracking both local and national criminal syndicates, no matter their modus operandi. Nigeria-US Relations, Bilateral Agreements & Cooperation “Since restoration of basic democracy in Nigeria in 1999, the bilateral relationship between Nigeria and United States has continued to improve, and cooperation on many important foreign policy goals, such as regional peacekeeping, has been excellent”, according to US State Department sources. Nigeria and United States have formal bilateral cooperative agreement covering many areas including: defense, security and law enforcement matters, according to diplomatic sources. However; “Democratic and economic progress in Nigeria is challenged by poor governance, entrenched corruption, internal conflict, ineffective service delivery, and pervasive poverty”, continued US State Department sources. “U.S. assistance is trying to help Nigeria address these challenges by fostering transparent and accountable governance; engaging civil society and government partners to battle corruption; increasing professionalism of the military and law enforcement agencies; strengthening health and education systems to deliver quality services; growing the non-oil economy; and improving the environment for regional and international trade. With national and local elections scheduled for mid-2011, efforts are also focused on creating an environment for transparent and credible elections”, concluded US State Department sources. Citizens of western industrialized countries especially United States and European countries are high value targets of Nigerian criminal groups which tend to kidnap them and demand for hefty ransom payment. Nigeria and United States governments had expressed commitment to proactive steps to counter-terrorism and kidnapping. Members of Ezekwenna family of Awuda-Nnobi, Idemili Local Government Area, Anambra State, Nigeria and United States targeted by the syndicate believe that thorough investigation may lead law enforcement to much wider national criminal syndicate, as well as yield information useful for informed policy decisions. Sources close to the investigation would not want to comment on record, but assured that investigation is ongoing and clinical. |
|
All rights reserved.