The Anambra State Police Command has arrested two suspected members of a deadly kidnap syndicate in a major breakthrough under the ongoing Operation Udo Ga-Achị Zero Kidnapping operation.
The arrested persons include a female informant and a native doctor believed to be supplying criminal charms and weapons to the gang.
The Police Public Relations Officer in Anambra, SP Tochukwu Ikenga made the disclosure in a press release issued on Monday.
Ikenga said the suspects were arrested by operatives of the Rapid Response Squad/Anti-kidnapping Unit, following intensified investigations into a high-profile kidnap incident in Nnewi.
According to him, the suspects, identified as 52-year-old Celestine Onuyia and 45-year-old Jacinta Okolo Udenka, both residents of Oba in Idemili South Local Government Area, were apprehended in connection with the July 2024 kidnapping of a victim for whom a whopping ransom of ₦17.5 million was paid before the eventual release.
The PPRO said during a search of their residence, security operatives recovered a significant cache of firearms and ammunition, including one pump-action gun, seven single-barrel dane guns, and twenty-eight live cartridges, signaling a well-coordinated and well-armed network.
He said further intelligence obtained during interrogation led operatives to a criminal hideout in Omasi, Ayamelum Local Government Area, where two AK-47 rifles and two empty AK-47 magazines were discovered and recovered, deepening suspicions of the duo’s involvement in a broader criminal operation.
According to him, preliminary findings allege that Mr. Celestine Onuyia is a native doctor who not only provided spiritual fortification for the gang but also served as the custodian of their weapons.
On the other hand, Mrs. Jacinta Okolo is believed to be an informant to the gang.
