A prosecution witness on Wednesday told the Federal High Court in Abuja that between 170 and 200 security operatives were killed in the South East due to the violent activities of the Indigenous People of Biafra and its armed wing, the Eastern Security Network.
The witness, a Department of State Services official, testified as the fourth prosecution witness in the ongoing terrorism trial of Nnamdi Kanu, the detained IPOB leader.
Led in evidence by the prosecuting counsel, Adegboyega Awomolo (SAN), the DSS operative gave graphic details of the alleged killings, attacks, and the importation of an illegal radio transmitter used to operate Radio Biafra.
According to the witness, one ESN member, Uzuoma Benjamin, also known as “Onye Army,” allegedly confessed during interrogation that they received instructions from Kanu to kill security agents and that a deceased ESN commander, Ikonso, was to be buried with 2,000 human heads.
He added that investigations, however, revealed that only 30 were eventually sourced.
The witness further alleged that the same Onye Army admitted to using the heads of 10 girls to prepare charms for the group’s spiritual protection and spoke of gruesome rituals carried out at ESN hideouts.
He narrated how the late former presidential aide to ex-President Goodluck Jonathan, Ahmed Gulak, was murdered on May 30, 2021, in Owerri, Imo State.
He claimed that Gulak was killed by IPOB members enforcing a sit-at-home order declared by Kanu.
According to him, Gulak was in a hired cab heading to the airport when they were intercepted by IPOB members who questioned them about their ethnicity.
“Despite Gulak claiming to be Igbo, he could not speak the language, and a prayer mark on his forehead allegedly led the attackers to identify him as a Muslim and shoot him,” he said.
The witness also told the court that he was among the first responders at the scene, adding that Gulak’s corpse was evacuated in his vehicle.
On the issue of Radio Biafra, the DSS official said Kanu imported a German-made FM radio transmitter into the country illegally without any licence from the National Broadcasting Commission.
He said the transmitter was recovered from a premises in Ubuluisiuzor, Anambra State, and taken to the DSS headquarters in Abuja.
The NBC, he added, sent an engineer on November 9, 2015, to inspect the equipment and confirmed it was an FM transmitter that required a licence, which Radio Biafra never obtained.
He stated that Kanu personally inspected the transmitter and made a video for IPOB members who had contributed funds for its purchase.
“The device was kept in the home of one Benjamin Madubugu. Two guns were later discovered under Madubugu’s mattress during a raid, leading to his prosecution for unlawful possession of firearms,” he added.
Awomolo then tendered a certified true copy of the provisional assessment of the radio transmitter report submitted by NBC.
The witness was asked to read a portion of the report, which he did.
He said the report indicated that the transmitter was a German-made one and that it was indeed a radio transmitter made for use on the FM frequency.
The witness said the report also stated that such a transmitter could only be procured and installed after being issued a licence and that NBC had not licensed Radio Biafra to broadcast in Nigeria.
He added that an investigation by his team revealed that for one to operate a radio station in the country, one must apply to a regulator, who will issue one a licence after due clearance by relevant security agencies.
The witness said, “In this case (Kanu’s case), there was no application from the defendant; he brought the transmitter in illegally without approval.”
He also said that an investigation confirmed that the defendant was the owner of the transmitter, which he kept on the premises of one Benjamin Madubugu.
The prosecution witness said Kanu later came into the country and inspected the transmitter, and made a video to satisfy members of the IPOB, who contributed money for its purchase.
He also read from a newspaper publication, where it was reported that an arrested commander of ESN confessed to the activities of his group.
The witness said when the DSS requested the police to access Onye Army, the police claimed he had escaped from custody.
He said during one of DSS’ raids of ESN members’ hideouts, “We saw some ESN members, about seven, with human heads and some eating human flesh, which they said was for spiritual fortification.
“We could not find the Onye Army. The police said he had escaped from custody.”
He said there were records about the number of security agents allegedly killed in the South-East, adding that the number stood between 170 and 200.
The witness, who said two DSS officials, including his driver, were among the victims, said it cut across all security agencies.
During cross-examination by defence counsel, Onyechi Ikpeazu (SAN), the witness admitted there were no official importation records for the transmitter and that he did not know when it was brought into the country.
He also stated he did not know of the involvement of a clearing firm, Benka Clearing and Forwarding, or of a certain Chief Isaac Maduka said to have handled the transmitter’s clearance.
On how they were able to locate the transmitter, the witness said his team used some equipment to analyse a video (showing Kanu inspecting the transmitter) to ascertain the location of the transmitter in Anambra.
He said he did not come across the names Benka Clearing and Forwarding and Chief Isaac Maduka in the course of the investigation.
He also said he was not aware that Benka cleared the transmitter, as claimed by Ikpeazu.
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