Ten hoodlums have been arrested and three camps allegedly harbouring criminals destroyed by the police on Friday in Achalla, in the Awka North Local Government Area of Anambra State.
The state police spokesperson, Toochukwu Ikenga, said the criminals earlier captured two policemen and a civilian, described as a car tracker, who joined the policemen in their operation to recover a stolen vehicle.
Ikenga added that the hoodlums murdered their captives (two policemen and the civilian) and set their bodies ablaze.
The PPRO said the police, however, reinforced and dislodged the criminals, leading to the killing of 10 of them, while many others escaped with bullet injuries.
He said, “During the operation, the police recovered a human skull, one locally-made rocket propelled grenade launcher, two bombs, one single-barrelled long gun, and empty chain of bullets. Other recovered items include one Toyota Sienna, one Mercedes Benz 4matic Jeep, two cylinders, a huge quantity of hard drugs and other items, including a police beret and a police belt.
“The recovery came following a counter-offensive operation launched against criminals who had on July 15, 2022, laid an ambush against a six-man police team and a civilian car tracker who were on a recovery operation of a Toyota Sienna space wagon.
“The vehicle was earlier snatched at gunpoint on July 9, 2022, in Oye-Agu Abagana. Four of the police operatives escaped the ambush, while two of the policemen and the car tracker were captured by the criminals.”
Ikenga further stated that during the counter-offensive operation, police officers neutralised over 10 of the armed men and destroyed three of their camps.
He added, “Unfortunately, some of the hoodlums escaped with bullet wounds. They had murdered their captives (two policemen and a civilian) and set their bodies ablaze. The remains of the two murdered police officers and the civilian car-tracker have been recovered and deposited in a morgue, while police operation is ongoing in the area to track the fleeing gang members.’’