News that the new security outfit known as Agunechemba has uncovered 32 graves in a hotel in insecurity-ravaged Anambra State might have raised the hope that the escalating criminal activities in the domain may soon be brought under control. However, the matter has raised many questions on the propriety of its official handling; and the questions need to be answered in a way that no Nigerian would be left in any doubt as regards the true position of things.

In other words, the facts and the details should be made open for Nigerians to ascertain what is being claimed to have happened with a view to either justifying or condemning some actions that have been taken so far by the government.

News broke recently that Agunechemba, a new security outfit recently unveiled by Governor Charles Soludo to confront the overwhelming criminality in Anambra, uncovered 32 graves and a shrine in a popular hotel located in the Oba community in Idemili South Local Government Area. The hotel which was officially registered as Udoka Golden Point Hotel and Suites is, however, popularly known as La Cruise Hotel and is located along the Onitsha-Owerri Road.

Media reports quoted the government as saying that the building which had been used under the guise of a hotel was raided following a tip-off by a whistle-blower and due intelligence that was gathered.

Though the Special Adviser to the Governor on Community Security, Ken Emeakayi declined comment on the incident, referring journalists to the Press Secretary to the governor, Christian Aburime, a statement said to be shared on the Anambra State New Media X (formerly Twitter) indicated that the hotel had been a hub for kidnappers and other criminal elements.

Besides, Aburime confirmed the clampdown and what the security operatives found in the building. ‘During the raid by securi’y operatives, graves were found on the ground floor of the hotel and some military camouflage and some arm cartridges of guns and so on were also found. Several incriminating items were also found there. As regards if corpses were found at the discovered graves or if any arrest was made, I cannot say for now. Investigations are still ongoing. Further development shall be made known as they unfold,’’ he said.

Part of the news that broke was that the hotel had been demolished by security operatives, amid a claim by police authorities in the state that they were yet to be briefed on the incident. The point is that by the time the hotel was demolished, police authorities in Anambra were not informed of the discoveries in the building.

Among the posers that the handling of the matter elicited from some quarters is why the police whose constitutional responsibility is to prevent and detect crime, apprehend offenders, preserve law and order, and protect life and property were not carried along in the government action. Should the demolition of the hotel be the first thing to happen? Were the purported graves and shrines part of what was demolished? If yes, is the action not tantamount to the destruction of evidence that should have been used to prosecute suspected perpetrators of criminal activities in the building? What is the purpose of the investigation Aburime said was ongoing when what could have served as evidence against suspected culprits has been destroyed?

Notwithstanding, Nigerians want to know if human bodies were found in the ‘graves’ or if there is any concrete evidence that bodies had been dumped in them in the past. This is crucial against the backdrop of suspicion by some people that what is claimed to be graves could be water reservoirs. The public also needs to know those behind the hotel and the crimes committed in the building.

If there is any evidence that people were killed in the hotel, the killers must be charged with murder because the Constitution says nobody has the right to take another person’s life unjustly. Prosecution of offenders should be part of the operation of Agunechemba. In the instance case, it is not enough to destroy the hotel. The fundamental human rights of some people could have been breached. Many people could have suffered injustice because of the activities of those who allegedly perpetrated criminality in the building. They must face the wrath of the law if indeed they have committed any crime. That is how insecurity can be effectively checked in Anambra.

Pending confirmation of what transpired in the Anambra incident, the increasing cases of murder in hotels in the country constitute a serious threat to the hospitality industry, government revenue and the economy in general. There is a need for the stakeholders to take decisive action against the menace.

On September 19, 1996, an 11-year-old groundnut hawker named Ikechukwu Okonkwo who was lured into Otokoto Hotel in Owerri, Imo State by one Innocent Ekeanyanwu was brutally murdered for a money ritual. An ex-student of the Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU) Ile-Ife, Osun State, Timothy Adegoke was found dead in the Hilton Honour Hotel in Ile-Ife owned by Dr Rahmon Adedoyin, who, alongside two of his workers were found guilty in the murder of the deceased and sentenced to death by a High Court in the domain.

In 2012, one Cynthia Udoka Okogosu, a Nigerian woman, was stalked on Facebook, lured from her Abuja residence to a hotel in Lagos under the pretext of engaging in business transactions, but was drugged, tied up, robbed, raped, beaten and strangled to death in the hotel. There was also the case of a young man, Gracious David-West (40) who was sentenced to death in Port Harcourt, Rivers State for killing nine women who he strangled to death in hotel rooms across the country between July and September 2019. If hotels are no longer seen as safe places to lodge, patronage may suffer, resulting in low investment in the industry and low revenue for the government that collects the tax.

As security operatives launch brave moves against criminals, they should also ensure that innocent residents do not suffer unjustly in the course of carrying out such operations. The crusade in Anambra State should aim to dislodge criminals and should be devoid of any political undertone. (The Guardian Editorial)