Police Arrest Killers Of US Army Veteran, Chuks Okebata (Photos)

Police Arrest Killers Of US Army Veteran, Chuks Okebata (Photos)

Operatives of the Inspector General of Police Special Intelligence
Response Team, IRT, led by Deputy Commissioner of Police, Abba Kyari,
have apprehended a seven-member notorious kidnapping gang that killed an
American Soldier in Okigwe area of Imo State in 2017. 

The deceased, a Nigerian who was serving in the US army and identified as Chuks Okebata, was holidaying in Okigwe when he was abducted and killed.

The suspects, Sunday Igwe, alias School Boy, Michael Ahmefula,
Oyebuchi Echefule, Ndubusi Isaac, Victor Dagogo, Chima Okoro and John
Edet were arrested last week.

In their confessional statement to the police, the suspects admitted
being members of a deadly armed robbery and kidnapping gang terrorizing
Imo, Abia and Rivers States. Their leader, School-Boy, said that they
never knew that the deceased was an American soldier and that they never
planned to kill him.

“He tried to disarm me and in the process was killed. If we had not
killed him, he would have killed us. He is strong with tough muscles and
the only way to save our lives was to kill him.

We bundled him into the boot of our operational vehicle after he was
kidnapped. We didn’t know who he was. While we were heading to our camp
where we hope to keep him until ransom is paid. He pulled out his gun
and started shooting at us from the boot and the bullet hit me on the
leg and the driver on his hand. 

Realizing the danger I asked our driver to stop the vehicle. As soon
as the vehicle came to a halt we disarmed him. He was killed right there
on the spot. We dumped his body inside a gutter and left. I want
everyone to understand that I have no intention of killing him but he
forced us into doing it,” he stated.

One of the suspects, 28-year-old Michael Ahamefuna, who is married with two children, recounts how he was introduced to crime

“I reside in Port Harcourt. I am from Abia state. I am a trader. I
met School-boy in a smoking joint where we smoke drugs and he used to
come and smoke drugs.

“He had injury on his leg then and he took me to his village and we
met one KC. We formed a kidnapping gang. We kidnapped a man who paid us
N1.5million and we went to another business that paid us N15million. We
also picked someone in Owerri and we took the person to Iteam in Abia
State. We got N10million from two victims, the last one that got us into
trouble occurred in October 2018 and we lost our leader in that
operation” he said