Suspected Anambra kidnap gang leader Okechukwu Nnaegbo arrested

Anambra State Governor Willie Obiano’s determination to rid the state of criminals has yielded result, as a suspected kidnap gang leader, Okechukwu Nnaegbo, has been nabbed aboard a South African Airways flight at the Murtala Mohammed International Airport, Ikeja, Lagos.

Nnaegbo, who has confessed to being the shadowy figure behind the recent high-profile kidnap cases in the state, was on his way to South Africa to evade the onslaught against criminals, when a team of detectives from the Special Anti-robbery Squad in Anambra, in collaboration with their Lagos State counterparts, pounced on him inside the aircraft.

Nnaegbo, who hails from Nri in Anaocha Local Government, is believed to be the leader of a gang of armed robbers and kidnappers, who made life miserable for Ndi Anambra until the recent launch of “Operation Kpochapu”, a special anti-crime task force, by the Obiano administration.

Commissioner of Police Usman A. Gwary said the suspect was aboard the Johannesburg-bound plane when he was arrested by his men with the assistance of airport security operatives.

Nnaegbo’s arrest climaxed a week of successful counter-offensive against kidnappers in Anambra, which saw members of the “Operation Kpochapu” demolishing two buildings that belonged to suspected kidnappers.

One of the buildings belonged to Nonso Mgbe, a 25-year-old suspected kidnapper from Azia village in Ihiala Local Government, who is believed to have been responsible for the death of a former commander of the Special Anti-robbery Squad (SARS) of the state police command. He was also said to have been responsible for other high-profile kidnap cases.

As Mgbe’s storey building was being demolished, villagers shook their heads.

A nine-bedroom bungalow belonging to another suspected kidnapper, Okechukwu Amasiatu of Ezinifite in Nnewi South Local Government, was also demolished by  “Operation Kpochapu”.

He was suspected to have been behind the kidnap of highly-placed indigenes. He was also reported to have been the mastermind of the killing of five policemen at Emeka Offor junction in Oraifite, Nnewi.

Sources at Ezinifite said Amasiatu lived in Lagos but chose his village and the neighbouring towns and villages as targets to carry out his criminal activities. They said his elder brother, Chimaobi, was shot by the police in a shoot-out, following a tip-off on the activities of his gang.

Obiano said his administration was determined to rescue Anambra from criminals.

The governor used the opportunity to reiterate his administration’s effort to discourage youths from committing crimes, saying a comprehensive databank was being compiled to give them jobs.

He advised youths to participate in the exercise organised by the Ministry of Youth and Sports.