Killing of another Ebubeagu operative highlights worsening insecurity in South-east

Gunmen Thursday night killed another operative of the Ebubeagu security outfit in Ebonyi State.

A lawmaker identified the slain operative as Iboko Christian.

The gunmen reportedly trailed him to his house in Nduogbuovu community in Izzi Local Government Area of the state.

The member representing Izzi East State Constituency in Ebonyi House of Assembly, Anthony Nwegede, said the attackers robbed Mr Christian of some money and a motorcycle before killing him.

The lawmaker condemned the killing. He said they had reported the matter to the police.

The police spokesperson in Ebonyi State, Loveth Odah, confirmed the incident.

She said the victim’s father reported the matter at the police station in the area.

“Policemen went with him to the victim’s house. They saw him in a pool of his blood,” Mrs Odah said.

She said the Ebubeagu operative was rushed to the hospital, where the doctor confirmed he was dead.

The police have transferred the matter to its headquarters in the state for investigation on the orders of the Commissioner of Police, Aliyu Garba, Mrs Odah said.

She said the police are on the trail of the killers.

His death comes barely a week after a commander of the security outfit was killed in Ezza North Local Government Area.

Another Ebubeagu operative, identified as Sunday Nwafor, was shot dead by gunmen and then beheaded in January in Ekpelu, Ikwo Local Government Area of the state.

Another member of the security outfit, Ifeanyi Orogbo, was killed and his remains partially burnt by the assailants in January in Igweledeoha, Amagu, in Ikwo Local Government Area of the state.

The South-east governors set up Ebubeagu to complement the job of the police and other security agencies in checking the rising crime rates in the region.

Ebonyi and Imo are the only two states that have inaugurated the outfit out of the five states in the region.

The security situation in the two states has, however, continued to deteriorate.

Security officials and their facilities, as well as high-profile personalities, remain the targets of deadly attacks by gunmen in the South-east region.

Several police stations were attacked in Imo state last week and many killed.

Gunmen killed an officer last month when they attacked the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency’s head office in Ebonyi.

The country home of Ohanézè Ndígbo’s president was razed by gunmen in Imo last month.

The separatist group, the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) is suspected to be behind the attacks in the region.

IPOB leader, Nnamdi Kanu, is detained in Abuja. He is standing trial for treasonable felony and terrorism.