Security operatives kill five gunmen, recover bombs in South-east Nigeria

Security operatives have killed five gunmen in Ufuma, a community in Orumba North Local Government Area of Anambra State, Nigeria’s South-east.

The police spokesperson in Anambra State, Tochukwu Ikenga, in a statement on Wednesday, said the armed persons were suspected members of an unnamed separatist group.

Mr Ikenga, a superintendent of police, said the armed persons were killed on Tuesday when the security operatives raided the suspects’ camp in the area.

The police spokesperson said the security operatives who carried out the operation included the operatives of the Nigeria Police Force, as well as personnel of the Nigerian military.

He said the operation was successful because of the collaboration and coordination among the joint security team.

“The (joint security) team neutralised five members of the armed group, while some others escaped with various degrees of bullet wounds,” he said.

Destruction of camps, recovery of bombs

Mr Ikenga said the joint security team also destroyed a criminal camp belonging to the armed persons and recovered some improvised explosive devices during the operation.

“During the operation, the security team razed down the criminal camp and recovered four undetonated improvised explosive devices, two AK-47 assault rifles, one pump action gun, and one 75-volt battery with other incriminating items,” he said.

The police spokesperson said the operation was still ongoing in the area for possible arrest of the fleeing assailants.

He said the Commissioner of Police in Anambra State, Nnaghe Obono, has asked for greater cooperation from the residents of the Ufuma Community to fight the criminals in the area.

Although the police did mention the separatist group they were referring to, the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) has been linked to some deadly attacks in the South-east.

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But IPOB, a group agitating for the secession of South-east and some parts of South-south from Nigeria, has repeatedly denied any involvement in the attacks.

The Nigerian security agencies, mainly the military, have been raiding camps belonging to the group and other separatist groups, mainly in the South-east.

Both personnel of the security agencies and members of the separatist groups have been killed during such deadly operations in the region.