The items recovered by the police during the operations
By Tony Adibe
The Enugu State Police Command said it has recorded significant operational successes in its sustained boundary security efforts under the Inspector-General of Police’s “Handshake Patrol” initiative.
The operations, conducted at different boundary locations across the State, led to the “foiling of an attempted armed robbery, the neutralization of one armed robbery suspect, the arrest of four other suspects, and the recovery of two firearms, suspected illicit drugs, and other incriminating exhibits,” according to a press release issued on Wednesday by the state Police Public Relations Officer, SP Daniel Ndukwe.
Ndukwe said that in one of the operations on June 28, 2026, at about 6:15 a.m., Operatives attached to the Command’s Amechi-Idodo Division, in collaboration with members of the Neighbourhood Watch, foiled an armed robbery attempt and dislodged the criminal gang that had blocked a section of the Enugu-Abakaliki Road to rob commuters.
The PPRO said that the gang, which had been on the Command’s watchlist for armed robberies along the boundary road, engaged the operatives in a gun duel during which its leader, Ifesinachi Kenneth (male), sustained gunshot injuries and was arrested, while other members escaped.
“His confessional statements led to the arrest of Izuchukwu Nwanga (male), who kept the gang’s proceeds of crime. Kenneth was taken for medical treatment but was later confirmed dead,” he said in the press release.
Ndukwe recalled that in another boundary operation carried out at about 5:30 p.m. on the same date, Police Operatives attached to the Umumba Division, acting on credible intelligence linked to an armed robbery gang, stormed a criminal hideout at Umumba Ndiagu Community in Ezeagu Local Government Area, within the boundary between Ezeagu and Anambra State.
He said that the operatives arrested two suspects identified as Uwah Ifesinachi Sunday (male, 23) and Chinonso Okafor Paul (male, 25). “One locally fabricated pistol, a knife, a scissors, and quantities of substances suspected to be Indian hemp were recovered,” Ndukwe said.
“Similarly, at about 10:00 a.m. on the same date, Operatives of the Command’s Distress Response Squad (DRS), while conducting stop-and-search operations along the Enugu-Onitsha Expressway at Ugwuoba in Oji-River Local Government Area, within the boundary between Anambra State, intercepted a commercial tricycle conveying passengers. A search of the passengers led to the recovery of a locally made cut-to-size gun belonging to Ifediri Nwobu (male, 21). The suspect attempted to evade arrest by fleeing and jumping into a nearby river, but was successfully apprehended,” according to the police spokesman.
He said that further investigations aimed at arresting other suspects connected to the cases are ongoing, while all apprehended suspects will be arraigned in court upon the conclusion of investigations. Meantime, the Commissioner of Police, Mr Mamman Bitrus Giwa, lauded the courage, professionalism, and collaboration demonstrated by the Police Operatives and members of the Neighbourhood Watch in the successful operations, Ndukwe said.
He said that Giwa had reaffirmed the Command’s commitment to strengthening boundary security and combating violent crimes through intelligence-led policing, while urging residents to remain law-abiding, vigilant, and supportive of ongoing efforts to rid the State of criminal elements.
