By PETER OKOLIE

The Imo Police Command says it has dislodged a notorious kidnapping syndicate operating within the Egbema River creek, successfully rescuing three abducted victims unharmed.

The state Commissioner of Police, Mr Audu Bosso, made the disclosure on Wednesday in Owerri while addressing newsmen on the command’s achievements between May and June.

Bosso said the tactical breakthrough followed the arrest and vital confessions of two principal kidnapping kingpins, Confidence Vitalis, 28, and Ishiaya Rejoice, 32.

He said operatives used intelligence from the detained ringleaders to raid the waterfront camp, noting that seven additional suspects were captured during a fierce gun duel.

According to him, the rescued victims have positively identified the detained suspects as the direct perpetrators of their traumatic abductions.

The commissioner said Police investigations linked the same criminal gang to the brutal murder of two Imo State Homeland Security personnel on May 16.

“The officers were killed in Umuguma while successfully preventing the syndicate from kidnapping a prominent citizen, Mrs Betty Oluchi Dike,” he said.

In a related raid on July 7, Bosso said police stormed the Obiakpu swamps, recovering a cache of 346 rounds of live ammunition.

He said a recovered military-grade hardware included specialised magazines for AK-47 and M16 assault rifles hidden inside the swampy terrain.

Providing a broader briefing, Bosso said that the command detained 184 suspects for various violent crimes within the two months.

“These achievements are a clear demonstration of the Command’s resolve to deny criminal elements any safe haven.

“The suspects are currently being processed for offences including terrorism, armed robbery, cultism, vehicle theft, and gruesome murder,” he said.

The commissioner said the state crackdown also netted suspected sexual predators, including a 58-year-old man who allegedly abused two 15-year-old job seekers.

“Additionally, a 19-year-old youth, Chijioke Johnson, was apprehended for the forced defilement of an eight-year-old girl in Ngor-Okpala.

“General items recovered across the state include multiple assault rifles, stolen luxury SUVs, charms, and a human skull,” the Police boss said.

Bosso assured the public that aggressive, intelligence-led operations would continue until all remaining criminal networks are completely dismantled. (NAN)

•PHOTO: Picture showing displayed items recovered from alleged kidnappers and other criminals by the Imo police Command between May and June in Owerri on Wednesday