Anambra State Police Command agents have detained three alleged thugs who specialize in threatening people's lives in order to get large amounts of money from them.
The third suspect was taken into custody at Ozubulu, the headquarters of the Ekwusigo local government area of the state, while the other two were captured at Umunze, the headquarters of the Orumba-South local government area.
During questioning, the three suspects revealed that they were members of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) security branch, the Eastern Security Network (ESN), according to the state's police spokesperson, deputy superintendent of police DSP Ikenga Tochukwu.
A police image maker claimed that two suspects detained at Umunze had threatened a guy by SMS, demanding large amounts of money, threatening to abduct him and his daughter and kill them both if he didn't pay.
He added that the other suspect apprehended in Ozubulu had written a businessman a similar SMS requesting a large sum of money, threatening to kidnap and kill him if he did not comply.
Tochukwu, however, said that a police command unit was sent after the thugs in the impacted areas after receiving a tip.
He claimed that by using technology, human resources, and covert investigation, police officers were able to locate and detain suspects in their hiding places and retrieve the SIM cards they had been using to communicate with their victims.
He said the state's commissioner of police, CP Aderemi Adeoye, had commended the professionalism of the divisional police officers, the DPOs in charge of the Umunze and Ozubulu police stations, and the team of operatives who made the arrests. He also promised that the suspects would be charged with a crime as soon as the investigation was finished so they could be held accountable for their actions.
