Police arrest 6 suspects over communal crisis

Operatives of the Nigeria Police Force have reportedly arrested six persons in connection to the violence in Akpawfu community in Enugu State, which has claimed several lives.

Sources told Daily Trust on Sunday that the suspects have been moved to the Force Criminal Investigation Department in Abuja for possible investigation and prosecution.

However, some accounts claimed that the suspects were members of a vigilante known as the Neighbourhood Watch in Akpawfu, Nkanu East Local Government Area.

Indigenes of the community, namely Ikechukwu Udenwaeze and Felix Ani, had on May 13 claimed that many indigenes have been killed and houses burnt while some residents have fled the town and taken refuge in neighbouring communities and Enugu metropolis following the crisis.

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Crisis in the ancient community which harbours the Ovu Lake had lingered for more than 35 years over land disputes among two main families of Umu Anigbiyovo Oyiwode Akpawfu and Umu Ani Oyiwode Akpawfu, resulting in invasion by bandits.

The Police Public Relations Officer of Enugu State, Daniel Ndukwe, was not available for comments. He did not also respond to text messages sent to him through the phone.