Ebonyi Communal Clash: Police Confirm Abduction Of 4 Persons In Akpoha As Farm Lands Are Destroyed At Amasiri  Community 

From Omaka OKOH, Abakaliki 

The Ebonyi State Police Command has confirmed the abduction of 4 indigenes of Akpoha Autonomous community even as Amasiri people have raised the alarm over destruction of farm lands.

Akpoha and Amasiri  communities both in Afikpo local government areas of Ebonyi State have been engaged in age-long fratricidal war over parcel of land, leading to killings and destruction of property worth several.milliona of Naira.

Confirming the incident, the Police Public Relations Officer, PPRO, SP Joshua Ukandu, said, the Divisional Police Office, DPO Afikpo Division said 4 persons were abducted on Friday last week,  but could not acertain the persons abucted.

The Police also said they have visited the scene of the incident to ascertain what actually happened and to find out more about the situation. 

The Division have commenced a search for the abducted persons and it has not been established the people or persons behind the abduction.

Investigation and a search party has been deployed, adding that they are also collaborating with the community leaders and traditional rulers to unravel the reason behind the latest abduction. 

A community source, who spoke journalists off record, gave the names of the victims to include Ugbo Oko, Otu Enya, Ebi Okoro and Comfort Igwe, a female and alleged that the 4 victims were abducted by Amasiri youths following the lingering communal Crisis between the two communities.

The source stated that they have been facing serious intimidation and harassment in the hands of Amasiri people, adding that a good number of their men and women has been abducted by the Amasiri youths and till date, they never returned.

THE BEAGLE NEWS, however, gathered that hostilities again started on July 22, 2025, when Akpoha mercenaries shot 5 Amasiri people and allegedly destroyed farm owned by one Chigbuogu Okechukwu Aluu.

It was further gathered that the same Akpoha people launched attacks on July 24, 2025 some women who went to farm.

Eye witness disclosed that Akpoha and Ibii war mercenaries chased away the women at Ugwu Nkporo and Apojo axis and some of them lost cash and fram inputs in the process.

An indigene of Amasiri community who also spoke to journalists on grounds of anonymity debunk the allegation that the missing persons were abducted by youths of Amasiri community adding that the people of Akpoha are the aggressors.

"We are peace loving people. The land in question belong to Amasiri people and the people of Akpoha are just trying to provoke our people to go into war with them but we have been restricting ourselves and claiming our youths down. Just early last week, they attacked and killed our people but we kept calm because the State Governor is already intervening in the crisis.

It would be recalled that in the second week of July 2025, leaders of Thoughts in the two warring communities of Amata Akpoha and Ezeke Amasiri Communities in Afikpo Local Government Area unanimously pledged to end any form of hostility in the lingering land dispute between the two warring communities.

The community leaders had commending the untiring efforts of the State Governor, Francis Nwifuru and the Afikpo Council Chairman, Mr. Timothy Nwachi in promoting peace and harmony and promised to ensure there is no further hostilities of any kind between the 2 neighbouring Communities.

They took the decision after series of intervention meetings with the State Governor and the Council Chairman.

The Council Chairman, Mr. Timothy Nwachi, after the resolution appealed to them to take the massage home and warn their youths against any further hostilities, blackmails, attacks and counter- attacks to enable Government concentrate on resolving the matter within the shortest possible time.

"Pls ensure you drive the peace process to a successful end. Let me also make it clear that we have identified greed, ego, bitterness and rivalry spirit are some of the causes of conflicts in some Communities. I therefore urged you all to always toe the path of peace in all your dealings with one another.

Some of other resolution reached at the ceasefire agreement includes, that Nobody from either of the Communities should enter the disputed land for any activity until the matter is resolved 

"A nomination of 15 representatives from each community to work with the government in resolving the dispute and a unanimous decision for an out-of-court settlement of the lingering crisis.