Shallow graves with mutilated bodies discovered in Ebonyi community – Nigerian Army

The shocking discovery came days after four people were beheaded over a protracted land dispute.

The Nigerian Army says it deployed troops in a joint operation within Amasiri and its adjoining communities in Afikpo North Local Government Area of Ebonyi State to protect innocent citizens.

Olabisi Ayeni, the Acting Deputy Director of Army Public Relations, 82 Division, Nigerian Army, disclosed this in a statement issued on Sunday in Enugu.

Mr Ayeni, a lieutenant colonel, noted that the attention of the Headquarters, 82 Division, had been drawn to videos circulating on social media, featuring journalists condemning deployment of troops to Amasiri following the killing of innocent citizens in the community,

The army spokesperson said that the intervention of the Nigerian Army and other security agencies in Amasiri, and its adjoining communities, was not an invasion as portrayed by the videos.

According to him, the narrative is misleading and did not reflect the true purpose of the joint operation.

“Troops were deployed as a direct response to the gruesome killings and beheadings of four individuals in Okporojo village, Edda Local Government Area, and subsequent discoveries of shallow graves containing mutilated bodies in Amasiri.

“These atrocities demanded urgent intervention to restore peace, protect innocent lives, and bring perpetrators to justice.

“The Ebonyi State Government, in line with its constitutional responsibility to safeguard lives and property, therefore imposed a curfew and temporarily closed schools in Amasiri to prevent escalation and ensure public safety.

“The security agencies were deployed to enforce the curfew, ensure uninterrupted investigations and security operations, protect medical teams, and manage the humanitarian implications of the crisis,” he said.

Mr Ayeni said that the joint teams, which included the Nigeria Police, the State Security Service, and the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, had been conducting intelligence-driven patrols, cordon-and-search operations, and forensic exhumations in the affected areas.

He said that credible intelligence had further revealed multiple sites where victims were buried, including adults and children.

The army spokesperson noted that the discovery of these graves underscored the scale of the crimes committed and the necessity of a robust security presence to dismantle criminal networks and prevent further violence.

“It is important to stress that the deployment of troops is not targeted at the people of Amasiri but at criminal elements exploiting communal tensions to perpetrate heinous crimes.

“The operation is intelligence-led, professional, and conducted in partnership with local leadership to ensure transparency and accountability.

“The Nigerian Army and sister agencies remain committed to protecting all citizens without bias; the intervention will continue until peace is fully restored, perpetrators are apprehended and justice is served.

“The public is urged to kindly disregard misinformation and support ongoing efforts to secure Afikpo North Council Area and its neighbouring communities,” he added.

Police arrest govt official, two traditional rulers over the killing

The police, about a week ago, arrested Anya Baron-Ogbonnia, the coordinator of Amasiri Development Centre in Afikpo, in connection with the killing of four people in Edda.

The police said that two traditional rulers, Onyaidam Bassey and Godfrey Oko-Obia from Amasiri in the Afikpo council area, had also been arrested in connection with the killing.

In a response to the incident, Governor Francis Nwifuru of Ebonyi had earlier sacked political appointees and dethroned traditional rulers from the Amasiri community over alleged complicity in the violent land dispute.

Mr Nwifuru, who visited the Okporojo community, said that the Amasiri community had not shown enough commitment to maintain permanent peace in the area, and the government had decided “to bare its fangs”.

“All government appointees from Amasiri from the local government development centre–management committee members to commissioners have been sacked.

“Traditional rulers from Amasiri will have their certificates of recognition withdrawn while all town union leaderships of villages in the community are dissolved,” he said.

(NAN)