By Deborah Nnamdi
Panic has gripped Ekoli, in the Edda Local Government Area of Ebonyi State, following the killing of one person and the injury of several others by suspected armed men.
Eyewitnesses allege that a local vigilante group known as the Catcham Boys was responsible for the attack that claimed the life of Udu Nnachi Uzor at his residence in Ndenworo village.
According to Uzor’s wife, Onyinye, about 20 assailants—allegedly accompanied by individuals in military and police uniforms—stormed their home around midday and demanded to see her husband.
“They went straight into the room and shot him dead. One of the Catcham members known as ‘Deri’ pulled the trigger,” she recounted, adding that her husband’s body has been taken to the morgue.
Community leader Chief Etta Egor condemned the activities of the vigilante group, accusing them of terrorizing residents with impunity.
“We saw them entering the villages with pump-action rifles, accompanied by security personnel. Moments later, gunshots rang out. By the time we reached Nnachi Uzor’s house, he was already dead. His family was in mourning,” Egor said. “We don’t understand why the government is allowing this group to unleash violence on innocent youths.”
Sources also reported that a MAC truck belonging to a former council chairman was hijacked by the attackers and remains missing.
The community has been on edge since a series of violent incidents began last month, including attacks by suspected political thugs which resulted in one death and the destruction of property worth millions of naira.
Former Local Government Chairman and ex-House of Assembly member, Dr. Eni Chima, along with his younger brother, Chima Chima, narrowly escaped an earlier attack. Their vehicle was riddled with bullets. Both men were later banished from the community for seven years, accused of inciting communal conflict—a move that has further deepened local unrest.
The recent killing has reignited fears and heightened the already tense atmosphere in the area.
