Police Arrest Dethroned Monarch, Others Over Robbery, Kidnapping

Posted by African Examiner Featured, Imo, Latest Headlines, News Across Nigeria, News From The State Wednesday, January 4th, 2017

By Ignatius Okpara

OWERRI NIGERIA (AFRICAN EXAMINER) – The police in Imo State South East Nigeria, have arrested the dethroned traditional ruler of Lagwa autonomous community in Mbaise, in Aboh Mbaise council Area of Imo state, Mr. Cosmas Onyeneke over alleged robbery and attempted kidnapping.

The suspect, who is other wise known as “Ise of Mbaise”, was nabbed alongside two of his gang members at Lagwa community.

According to a police source, Onyeneke and his five-man gang were said to have waylaid one Mr. Emmanuel Ogbonna, a business mogul and petroleum dealer while conveying the sum of N4.6million to a bank in Owerri, the Imo state capital.

The gang overpowered the police orderly one sergeant Ebere attached to Mr. Ogbonna, gave him several machete cuts and took away his police riffle and two mobile phones.

AFRICAN EXAMINER gathered that in the ensuing scuffle, Mr. Ogbonna sustained multiple fractures from machete cuts and one Henry Nwachukwu was also stabbed by the gang.

Narrating his ordeal to newsmen Tuesday, Mr. Ogbonna said following kidnap threat, he has been receiving in the past four weeks, he demanded for police protection.

Consequently, a mobile policeman was attached to him for security purposes, saying “in the past weeks unknown persons have been calling me to drop some millions of naira or risk being kidnapped.

“I reported to the police and a mobile policeman was attached to me, because of the long holidays we could not deposit N4.6million we realized from sales of petroleum products.

“I did not know that this notorious man was monitoring my movement, on Monday, January 2, 2017 we decided to move the cash to the bank only for Onyeneke and his gang to attack us.

“Onyeneke personally took away the money after his gang destroyed the Toyota Camry conveying us, i was lucky to have escaped alive as he instructed his men to kill me”,

Ogbonna further alleged that Onyeneke and his gang later destroyed all the solar system he installed at Eziudo Lagwa and fired several gunshots in his compound.

According to Ogbonna, the police should intensify action to arrest Christopher Njoku, Evarestus Ashiegbu, Livinus Onyeneke and Jonathan Onyeneke, a.k.a Bullet being members of the gang.

He said: “This man we call Ise of Mbaise is known for his notoriety and that was part of the reason for his dethronement as the traditional ruler of Lagwa community.

“The government should not allow him to get away with this crime, he is a terror in the town”.

After his arrest, Onyenek was handcuffed and taken to Lagwa for a search.

A source close to the State Police Command hinted that the State Commissioner of police Mr. Taiwo Lakanu has vowed to see to the end of the incident.