Suspected cultists have beheaded the President of the Omoku Youth Federation in Ogba-Egbema-Ndoni Local Government Area of Rivers State, Ifeanyi Azuazu, and shot dead his personal aide, Chigozie Oluwu.
The attack occurred around 6 p.m. on Thursday when about seven gunmen stormed a popular drinking spot along Ogolo Street, off Palace Road, Omoku. Witnesses said the assailants arrived in two vehicles and confronted Azuazu, ordering him into one of the cars.
When Oluwu attempted to intervene, he was shot dead on the spot. The gunmen then abducted Azuazu and sped off to an unknown location.
The incident triggered panic in the area as residents and passersby fled, while shop owners hurriedly shut their businesses. A video that later circulated online showed local youths assisting security operatives to load Oluwu’s body into an open police patrol van.
On Friday afternoon, a local vigilante group discovered Azuazu’s headless body in a bush. The Ogba-Egbema-Ndoni Local Government Area Security and Planning Advisory Committee (OSPAC) confirmed the killings.
OSPAC’s Public Relations Officer, Godnews Nkem, said Oluwu was killed before the youth leader was abducted, adding that intelligence-led efforts led to the recovery of Azuazu’s mutilated body.
While condemning the attack, OSPAC urged residents to remain calm and allow security agencies to conduct thorough investigations.
The spokesperson for the Rivers State Police Command, SP Grace Iringe-Koko, also confirmed the incident, describing it as cult-related. She said the Commissioner of Police had ordered a full-scale investigation to track down and prosecute those responsible.
