TheCable

The Anambra police command says two officers were killed during an ambush by gunmen in the state.

Tochi Ikenga, Anambra police spokesman, confirmed the development in a statement on Saturday.

According to him, a team of six police officers were on the trail of gunmen who had snatched a Toyota Sienna space wagon in Oye-Agu Abagana, before they ran into an ambush.

Another civilian, who was tracking the car alongside the police team, was also killed.

He, however, added that a counter-offensive operation carried out by a joint team of security operatives, on Friday, led to the recovery of weapons and other items from hideouts in Amukabia forest, Achalla in Awka north LGA of Anambra state.

He listed the items recovered to include “a human skull, one locally-made rocket propelled grenade (RPG) launcher, two RPG bombs, one single-barrel shotgun, one Toyota Sienna, one Mercedes Benz 4matic SUV, a huge quantity of drugs, a police beret, and a police belt”.

“The recovery came about following a counter-offensive operation launched against criminal elements who had on 9/7/2022 ambushed and killed two Police Officers and a civilian car tracker who were on the trail of a criminal gang that snatched a Toyota Sienna Space Wagon vehicle at gun point on 9/7/2022 in Oye-Agu Abagana,” the statement reads.

“The other four Police Officers in the team had gallantly fought their way through the ambush to safety, killing some of the insurgents.

“In the counter-offensive operation that followed, three insurgents’ camps were destroyed and high-grade weapons recovered.

“The remains of the two murdered police officers and the civilian tracker have been recovered and deposited in a morgue.

“Effort is ongoing to hunt down remnants of the insurgents who murdered the civilian tracker and the two Police Officers.”