An anti-crime squad of the police has apprehended a suspected hardened criminal kingpin in Anambra State.
The suspect, identified as Mr. Felix Ndubuisi Ekunie, has reportedly been in and out of the police net in Anambra State since his initial arrest in 2015 by operatives of the Department of State Services (DSS), who later handed him over to the police.
He was rearrested by the IGP special squad from Abuja on Saturday, January 27, 2024. The squad detained him at his residence in Ndam village, Nnobi community, Idemili-South local government.
He is allegedly the leader of a deadly car snatching and armed-robbery syndicate specialising in stealing exotic vehicles and executing armed robberies.
Ekunie was reportedly arrested while celebrating his initiation into the traditional Ozo title, a preliminary step toward becoming a high chief (an Ichie) in his Nnobi community.
The Anambra State Police Command ‘s Public Relations Officer, Deputy Superintendent of Police, DSP Ikenga Tochukwu, confirmed Ekunie’s arrest to LEADERSHIP on Wednesday.
He said that Ekunie was detained in the state police command facilities and would be charged to court once the investigation is completed.
“All I can say is that the suspect (Ekunie) is in our custody, and the Commissioner of Police, CP Aderemi Adeoye, has ordered that he be charged to court as soon as the investigation concludes,” DSP Tochukwu said.
LEADERSHIP learned that Ekunie’s gang has carried out several car-snatching operations, targeting luxury cars with heavily armed men in Anambra State. Many car drivers and occupants who resisted were reportedly shot and killed by the gang.
Ekunie was also arrested for deadly car snatching by the DSS Anambra State Command in December 2015 and May 2021 and later handed over to the police for prosecution. He was reportedly released without being charged to court after allegedly settling the police.
Following his release, he allegedly resumed his notorious activities and executed several deadly car snatching operations in Onitsha, 33 Nkwere-Ezunaka, Nsugbe, etc.
A former Anambra State Security informant revealed that most victims of Ekunie’s operations were taken to Obi-aja bridge along the Nnobi-Ideani-Uke axis in Idemili-South local government area. Some were released, while others were killed.
A former commander of the defunct SARS in Awkuzu, Oyi local government area, Chief Superintendent of Police (CSP) Patrick Agbazue, reportedly lost his Toyota Camry Spider in 2020 to Ekunie’s gang.
The former police informant lamented that despite reporting deadly criminals to the police, the suspects were often released without being charged to court after allegedly paying off the police.
“The recovered luxury vehicles from the car theft syndicate could expose misconduct within the Anambra State police,” the source stated.
He added that over 22 persons were known to have been murdered due to the criminal activities of Ekunie’s gang.
The source also claimed that Ekunie had connections with many active and retired police officers, including CSPs, ACPs, DCPs, CPs, AIGs, and DIGs, who aided his gang. He urged the police high command to thoroughly investigate the suspect.
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