Tension has once again erupted in Ekoli-Edda, a community in the Edda Local Government Area of Ebonyi State, following a fresh outbreak of violence that claimed the life of one person and left several others injured. The latest attack, which occurred on Wednesday, has plunged the already fragile community deeper into fear and unrest.
The victim, identified as Udu Nnachi Uzor, was reportedly killed in his home at Ndenworo village by suspected members of a local vigilante group known as “Catcham boys.” Eyewitnesses alleged that the assailants, numbering about 20 and accompanied by armed policemen and soldiers, stormed the residence around midday, demanding to see the victim. According to his wife Onyinye, who witnessed the horrific incident, the attackers went straight into the room and shot him at close range.
“He was shot by one of the Catcham boys called Deri,” she recounted in a tearful telephone interview, adding that her husband’s remains have since been deposited at the morgue.
The brutal killing comes just weeks after the community witnessed a wave of unrest allegedly triggered by political thugs. That earlier attack claimed another life and resulted in the destruction of properties worth millions of naira. Among the targets were former local government chairman and ex-House of Assembly member, Dr. Eni Uduma Chima, and his younger brother, Chima Uduma Chima. Both men narrowly escaped death when gunmen opened fire on their SUV, riddling it with bullets.
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In a shocking twist, members of the community subsequently announced the banishment of the Chima brothers for a period of seven years, accusing them of instigating the violence and promoting communal conflict. That controversial decision only deepened the divide within the community and set the stage for the latest escalation.
Community leader Chief Etta Egor expressed deep concern over the role of the Catcham vigilante group, accusing them of moving through villages armed with pump-action rifles and terrorizing residents under the protection of security forces. “We saw them with policemen and soldiers. Soon after, we heard gunshots. By the time we got to Nnachi Uzor’s house, he was already dead and his family was in anguish,” Chief Egor said, questioning why the government has allowed such continuous attacks on the community’s youth.
Sources also revealed that a MAC truck belonging to the former council chairman, which was reportedly hijacked during the earlier violence, remains missing.
As tensions continue to escalate in Ekoli-Edda, residents are calling for urgent government intervention to prevent further bloodshed and restore peace to the embattled community.
