Following wanton killings and abductions of innocent residents in the South-East, some prominent businessmen in the region have begun moves to fight against hoodlums who have made life unbearable for residents and investors.

Findings by Saturday PUNCH showed that billions of naira had been raised  by the groups, including those from Orsu Local Government Area of Imo State and its neighbouring Ihiala council area of Anambra State.

The businessmen, it was gathered, were funding various resistance groups in the form of vigilantes to tackle the rampant killings by hoodlums terrorising Anambra, Imo, Abia, Ebonyi, and Enugu states.

Also, in rural areas across the region, our correspondents learnt that wealthy businessmen were secretly funding militias to counter the insurgency in the South-East.

In the last one week, states in the region have come under intense attack by gunmen who have unleashed mayhem in Orlu, Okigwe, Oru West, Ihiala, among other areas.

The militant wing of the outlawed Indigenous People of Biafra, known as the Eastern Security Network, has been accused of complicity in the continuous breach of security in the region.

Saturday PUNCH gathered that the Idinma Orsu Initiative, a community-led effort to combat insecurity in Imo State, raised over N800m in its ongoing fight against criminals linked to IPOB’s ESN.

The initiative, which began in 2023, has recorded notable successes, including the acquisition of 18 operational vehicles and collaboration with security forces to restore peace in the region.

The President of the Idinma Orsu Initiative, Chief Chuddy Okapaku, said the group’s journey began with a gathering in Owerri, Imo State, where members read out a communiqué and started raising funds.

“After we did this, these ESN members started panicking, burning houses, and looting goods. They felled many trees, hijacked trailers, and used them to block roads to cut off the authorities,” he said.

He explained that the turning point came when the kidnapping crisis became unbearable.

In response, the group met with the Imo State Governor, Hope Uzodimma, who granted them an audience for about a month.

They then reportedly collaborated with officers of the Department of State Services, who deployed personnel in their local government.

“We started with one town. From there, we started fighting IPOB. We also got the military involved. We assist the military in providing AGO (diesel) and PMS (petrol). We also buy some food and service the vehicles. We have over 18 vehicles and have arranged our vigilantes,” Okapaku stated.

He noted that the group had been active for four years, with 2025 marking its fifth year of operations.

Also, businessmen in Ehime Mbano LGA of Imo State said they took it upon themselves to fund small vigilance groups to improve security in the area.

One of the vigilance groups in the area, funded by local merchants, is the Nsu Security Vigilance Group.

A community leader in the area, Chief Kelechi Anowi, told Saturday PUNCH that the vigilantes often escorted wealthy individuals to burials and other ceremonies to prevent attacks by criminals.

He noted that hiring vigilantes was cheaper than engaging the police.

“The businessmen, who are among the wealthy people in the area, have continued to fund the Nsu Security Vigilance Group. They have also purchased patrol vehicles for the local security outfit. This is all targeted at countering moves by criminals.

“Some of the vigilance groups here in Ehime Mbano and other parts of Imo State escort these rich men to burials and other ceremonies just to protect them. The vigilantes are paid salaries every month. Millions of naira have been spent on vigilantes by these wealthy men since the rise of insecurity in the state and the South-East in general,” Anowi added.

The killings in the South-East have increased in the last few weeks.

On Sunday, suspected criminals invaded Amagu and two other villages in Nkalaha community, Ishielu LGA of Ebonyi State, killing no fewer than 10 residents and burning houses.

As of Wednesday, the death toll had risen to 15, with many more residents still missing.

Again, at least six church members, including a pastor of The Lord’s Chosen Church, Nkaleha, Ebonyi State, were killed by suspected hoodlums last Sunday.

Sources said the attackers also injured many worshippers during the attack.

Similarly, the lifeless body of Justice Azuka, the member representing Onitsha North 1 Constituency in the Anambra State House of Assembly, was found along the 2nd Niger Bridge in the early hours of Thursday.

Azuka was abducted on Christmas Eve along Ugwunaobankpa Road in Inland Town, Onitsha, while returning home for the festivities.

However, his decomposing body was later discovered by a joint team of security operatives, raising further concerns over the spate of mindless killings in the South-East.

Earlier in January, a former National Human Rights Commission Chairman, Prof. Chidi Odinkalu, who hails from Orsu, Imo State, posted on X that at least 18 people were killed in coordinated attacks across several communities in his hometown.

He listed the affected areas as Umukabia, Eziawa, Ihitte Nasa, Umuhu, Amaoku, and Amaebe, adding that the victims suffered  machete wounds.

The President of the Idinma Orsu Initiative, Chief Chuddy Okparaku, told Saturday PUNCH how IPOB insurgents infiltrated the community in 2020.

He expressed shock at how the police, military, and other agencies ignored the situation until the militants relocated to Orsu Itokwa, taking advantage of the area’s rugged terrain.

He said, “What baffles me is that the police, military, and other agencies did nothing until they relocated to Orsu Itokwa. This is because that community has a long valley.

“There are several valleys in my community that are as low as 1,500 kilometres below sea level. Some are 800 kilometres deep. These terrorists hide in these valleys and plan how to carry out their wicked acts.”

Okparaku lamented the severe impact of IPOB’s activities, noting how their occupation of Orsu stripped the people of their freedom and peace.

In Imo State, the worst-hit local government areas include Orsu, Orlu, and Okigwe, where communities have been deserted.

Others are Ideato North, where a council chairman, Chris Ohizu, was kidnapped and later beheaded.

Njaba, Onuimo, Oru West, and Oru East council areas have had a significant presence of IPOB and ESN activities.

Orsu-Ihitte-ukwa, Awo-Idemili, Umuhu Okabia, Ebenator, Asah Ubirielem, and Amaruru were, until April 2020, peaceful communities noted for farming, palm wine tapping, basket weaving, and trading.

However, they are currently recovering from the mayhem of insurgency.

According to a credible source, the first ESN attack was on December 24, 2020, in Orsu, where one Mike Ahizu led others to gun down a resident, Daniel Kizito.

Days later, the President-General of Isiekenesi, Chief Leo Anuforo, was killed alongside two security operatives at Awo-Idemili.

Meanwhile, a shocking viral video surfaced on Sunday, showing heavily armed local security operatives clad in black attire brutally assaulting a young male resident who wore only a pair of shorts.

The victim was mercilessly beaten as the men interrogated him, repeatedly demanding, “Who is Papa Biafra?”

Blood streamed down his head as he struggled to speak, but the vigilantes showed no mercy and continued to torture him.

They lashed him relentlessly with wooden rods, and as he lay helplessly on the sandy ground, one operative accused him of being among the attackers terrorising the community and struck him with the butt of his gun.

Another stomped on the man before delivering a final act—shooting him in the head at close range, leaving his lifeless body in a pool of blood.

The video, shared by a netizen who identified himself as Simon Ekpa-Odogwu Dike, ignited outrage on social media.

Reacting to the clip, a netizen, Christiana Chidinma, said, “This is so sad. A boy simply going to the stream to fetch water!”

@BMOFreedomF also posted, “Look at the condition you have put your fellow Biafrans in—because of your foolishness and greed for money. Manga. UGO247. This is your village.”

A prominent businessman in Enugu State, who asked not to be identified, decried the rising killings in the South-East.

While reacting to the viral video, he said, “We have lost too many innocent youths. If proper investigations had been carried out, some of the youths would have been spared. Nobody encourages extrajudicial killings, but the government should conduct proper investigations.

“Inasmuch as some disgruntled youths have also taken the law into their hands by killing innocent souls, two wrongs do not make a right. The government should take necessary steps to investigate the suspected criminals. They should be taken to court, and if found guilty, they can then be sentenced to death.

“But all in all, the governors should see to it that these things are brought to an end. People should not just be losing their lives anyhow. There are too many security issues in the South-East.”

The Special Adviser to the Imo State Governor on Public Communication, Onwuasoanya Jones, disowned the killers.

He said, “The individuals in the viral video are neither vigilantes, operatives of any community in Imo State nor members of the Imo Security Organisation or any recognised security agency in the state. If anything, they appear to be criminals whose aim might be to cast security operations in a bad light.

“There is no evidence to suggest that the location of this incident is anywhere in Imo State. In this digital age, when various insurgent groups are willing to go to any length to discredit the government’s efforts in combating insecurity, we must be cautious in accepting videos at face value.”

Saturday PUNCH learnt that the Anambra State Government, under the leadership of Governor Chukwuma Soludo, took a significant step towards strengthening security with the enactment of the Anambra State Homeland Security Law (2025) and the launch of ‘Operation Udo Ga Achi’.

The security initiative, code-named, ‘Agwu na eche mba,’ is a multi-agency operation involving over 2,000 operatives drawn from the Nigerian Army, Navy, Police Force, Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, Anambra Security Forces, and Neighbourhood Watch groups across all 179 communities in Anambra State.

According to the Managing Director of the Anambra State Civic and Social Reformation Office, Chief Chuka Nnabuife, the operatives leveraged artificial intelligence and digital technologies to monitor crime hotspots and deploy strategic security initiatives.

The operation is supported by five AI-powered monitoring centres, with the central hub located in Awka.

“There are over 300 areas of operations. These security operatives function strictly within the framework of Nigeria’s laws and the Anambra State Homeland Security Law (2025), ensuring their activities remain lawful and effective,” he said.

A top Anambra government official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the measures were yielding positive results.

The official noted that no one could claim ignorance of the challenges the South-East was facing.

He added that the new security outfit in the state had proved effective in combating criminal elements.

He said, “This new security outfit in Anambra has been successful in arresting kidnappers and uncovering their hideouts. There’s a law that mandates anyone harbouring these criminals in their house to forfeit the building.

“That is why many properties are being demolished—they serve as hideouts for these kidnappers. It’s yielding results and provides room for whistleblowers, with rewards for those who come forward. The atmosphere is now calmer. Some kidnappers have fled the state, and the rate of kidnapping has reduced.”

Speaking to Saturday PUNCH, a source said IPOB had become a franchise to cause mayhem, sayingmany hoodlums were using the name of the group to perpetrate mayhem.

He insisted that those wreaking havoc in the region were kidnappers, robbers, and human organ harvesters.

According to the source, since the arrest of Simon Ekpa, South-East residents have been emboldened to defend their communities by strengthening local vigilantes, who have been bursting the hideouts of suspected criminals.

The source said, “In Anambra, each town has its vigilante. The late Ifeanyi Mbah revived one group in Nnewi and equipped them. All other towns also have their vigilantes. Remember that the criminals once burnt a police station in Anambra. That’s why the policemen are afraid. There are many police checkpoints in the state, and there are serious cases of extortion, but on Mondays, the police disappear.”

The Anambra State Commissioner for Information, Law Mefor, said there were vigilance groups across the 179 communities in the state.

He added that the recent Operation ‘Udo Ga-Achi’, established by the state government was to ward off criminal elements from the state and not to witch-hunt Biafra agitators.

He said, “The assignment is very basic. It is to rid the state of violent crimes, kidnapping, armed robbery, cultism, and the likes. The outfit is made up of over 2,000 well-trained men, and they are distributed all over Anambra State. It is just three weeks since the operation was launched, and they are already registering some spectacular results. But the operation was never set up to go after Biafra agitators.”

Also addressing the rising security concerns, the Ebonyi State Government on Friday announced that it was considering an interstate surveillance security initiative to curb the increasing criminal activities in communities along its borders with neighbouring states.

The Ebonyi State Commissioner for Information, Jude Okpor, said the proposed interstate security arrangement would enhance information-sharing among states in the region.

He said, “The state’s position on security has been clear since the beginning of the current administration. However, the recent incident occurred in our border areas shared with Benue and Enugu states. As a result, the state government is exploring an interstate surveillance security initiative to strengthen intelligence-sharing among states in the region.

“It is important to note that the suspect arrested in connection with the recent attack was apprehended with the assistance of security agents in Enugu State. Therefore, we are working on improving our security collaboration with neighbouring states to prevent similar occurrences in the future.”