The Imo State police command has announced that its operatives killed six suspected members of the “Eastern Security Network” (ESN) in Ihube, Okigwe LGA.
A statement issued on Saturday by Henry Okoye, the command’s spokesperson, confirmed that the police raided an ESN camp in the village on Friday, eliminating three leaders and three members of the group.
Okoye explained that the operation was based on credible information from a whistleblower.
He identified the leaders as Ifeanyi Anayo, also known as “Zuma De Rock”; Chukwuemeka Odionyenfe, known as “Nmimi”; and Kingsley Sunday, all from Ogube, Ihube in Okigwe LGA.
The police recovered five AK-47 rifles, 552 rounds of live ammunition, improvised explosive devices (IEDs), several communication devices, and eight operational motorcycles from the group.
“On January 24, 2025, operatives from the Command’s tactical unit, acting on credible intelligence, launched a coordinated operation aimed at locating and dislodging the terrorists’ hideouts,” the statement reads.
“The police operatives came under heavy gunfire from suspected IPOB/ESN terrorists but demonstrated exceptional courage and engaged the attackers in a fierce gun battle.”
The group had been linked to several high-profile crimes, including the attack on the “Owerri Correctional Centre” on April 5, 2021, the killing of five policemen in “Umunna, Okigwe” on December 12, 2022, and the burning of “Arondizuogu Police Station” on February 8, 2022.
They were also associated with multiple kidnappings, such as those of “WAEC staff” on June 5, 2023, four “reverend sisters” on August 21, 2022, and four “Chinese nationals” on December 6, 2023.
