-Demolishes Their Rebuilt Hideouts
— Residents Applaud Renewed Action As Arms Are Recovered
The Imo State Government has again moved decisively against criminality with the demolition of shanties that resurfaced at Avu Junction in Owerri West Local Government Area, despite earlier clearance.
Officials from the Office of the Governor on Monitoring and Compliance, led by Nze Chinasa Nwaneri, returned to the site on Wednesday following intelligence reports that some of the makeshift structures earlier pulled down had been quickly rebuilt and were once again being used as criminal hideouts.
On arrival, the team met shanties springing up around the cleared location. They were promptly demolished to prevent the blackspot from regaining life as a criminal base. Security operatives who accompanied the enforcement team also recovered a large cache of arms and other dangerous weapons, which were immediately handed over to the relevant authorities for investigation and prosecution.
The Avu Junction axis, situated behind the correctional facility, had been identified in recent weeks as a notorious den where criminal elements converged to plan kidnappings, armed robberies, and other violent crimes.
Residents, who watched the renewed operation with relief, expressed gratitude to Governor Hope Uzodimma for his sustained commitment to making their communities safe. Many described the government’s persistence as a clear demonstration of political will to stamp out crime.
“This is exactly the kind of follow-up we need. Criminals should know Imo is no longer a safe ground for them. We thank our governor for standing firm,” a resident said at the scene.
Speaking after the operation, Nze Chinasa Nwaneri reaffirmed that the Uzodimma administration will not relent until all criminal hideouts across the state are dismantled. “His Excellency has given clear directives that there must be no room for criminals in Imo. Wherever they regroup, we shall go after them until our people can live in peace,” he stated.
The government assured that similar follow-up checks will be conducted at other identified blackspots to ensure criminals are permanently denied any operational base in the state.
