The Nigeria Police Force has arrested one Chief Moses Nnamani who allegedly paid N80,000 to an Inspector with the Special Weapons and Tactical Squad (SWAT) to kill the traditional ruler of the Oruku community in the Nkanu East Local Government Area of Enugu State, Igwe Emmanuel Mba.
According to SaharaReporters, Nnamani, who had been in hiding since December 26, 2020, after the gruesome murder of the monarch was apprehended two weeks ago in Abuja.
A team of policemen from the Special Weapons and Tactical Squad (SWAT) on December 26, 2020, shot and killed Mba who was addressing members of his community during a town hall meeting.
After killing him, the policemen reportedly dumped his remains at the National Orthopedic Hospital, Enugu hospital mortuary and returned to Abuja.
It was reported that Nnamani led the policemen to the traditional ruler before he was shot dead by one Inspector Dennis, to whom he had paid N80,000 to his account before they arrived at the community.
Mr Agozi Ani, a resident of the community who has been monitoring the case told SaharaReporters on Friday that Nnamani had been arrested in Abuja, Nigeria’s federal capital territory.
Ani said, “Yes, the police have arrested Moses Nnamani, the man who paid the policeman from the Force Headquarters to kill a traditional ruler of the Oruku community in the Nkanu East Local Government Area of Enugu State on December 26, 2020, during the community’s annual general return meeting.
“The policeman, Inspector Dennis who has been in detention at the Force Headquarters in Abuja since 2020 after the killing of the monarch confessed to the police investigators at the FIB that the man paid him money to kill the Igwe.
“The police investigation also found out that the said Moses Nnamani had wanted to become the Igwe of the community but the government appointed the late Emmanuel Mbah as the Igwe of the community instead of him.
“So, because of his long intentions to be the traditional ruler, he vowed never to recognize Mbah, whom the Enugu State government produced. He went to Abuja and paid some police officers at SWAT, who now made frivolous charges that the Igwe was a criminal, armed robber, and kidnappers among others.
“Having paid them, the officers took the matter to one court. After the court granted bail to him and some others joined in the case, the same policemen rearrested them and took them to another court.”
He added, “That was what they were doing until finally on December 26, 2020, the same policemen came to Oruku where we were having a town meeting at the town hall, and shot the Igwe dead.
“So the FIB in their investigation found out that – one, the arrest warrant they (policemen) came to Enugu with, claiming they were there to arrest ‘criminals’ was fake; secondly, they discovered that Moses Nnamani paid money into the shooter’s bank account (the policeman that shot and killed the traditional ruler).
“Since 2020, the police authorities in Abuja have done very well to keep the killer policeman in custody until two weeks ago when they apprehended Chief Nnamani. They were monitoring him until two weeks ago when he came into Abuja and they arrested him. So, he is currently with them at the FIB as we speak now.”
However, Ani regretted that since the arrest and detention of the police killer and subsequent arrest of Nnamani, the police have refused to bring them to Enugu and charge them to court to face justice.
He said, “They were supposed to move them down to Enugu but we believe because of the ethnicity of the policeman that shot and killed the Igwe, the police are dragging their leg in doing so.
“They asked us to write different letters to the Attorney General of the Federation and all that before they will do their due diligence to prosecute these people. They have concluded their investigation and they found out that this man hired this policeman to kill the monarch which is why they have held him since 2020 till now.
“The said policeman had gone for orderly room trial but since then we have heard nothing but he is still in custody,” he added.
Meanwhile, efforts made to speak to the Force Police Public Relations Officer, ACP Olumuyiwa Adejobi, to find out why the police had not arraigned the suspects were unsuccessful as he did not answer his calls nor reply to a text message sent to him.
Sahara Reporters