The Enugu state police command on Wednesday paraded 35 persons arrested for various criminal offences in the state in the month of February.

Parading the suspects at the state police headquarters, Enugu, the Police Public Relations Officer, Daniel Ndukwe, an Assistant Superintendent Police said that a total of six arms, six live cartridges, two tricycles, one vehicle, four motorcycles and N47,000 were recovered from the suspects.

Ndukwe said that the arrests were made possible through intelligence gathering, robust collaboration with sister security agencies, effective partnership, cooperation with other relevant security stakeholders and the citizenry as well as the unalloyed loyalty, dedication and diligence of the officers and men of the command.

The PPRO said that the command through its operatives of Anti-Cult Unit, on February 15, arrested the two leaders of Black Axe confraternity; Uzochukwu Kenneth Egeonu aka ‘Zamani’ and Chukwuemeka Chigozie aka ‘Sparrow’, who stoked cult war that claimed 11 lives between March and August 2019 at the University town of Nsukka in their various hideouts.

“Egeonu ‘M’, a native of Obodoukwu in Ideato North LGA of Imo state, enrolled as a JUPEB student of the University of Nigeria, Nsukka (UNN) in 2016.

READ ALSO: Sports betting agent killed, catapulted from balcony while trying to settle dispute between customers

In 2017, he was initiated into the Black Axe confraternity, while in the month of March of the same year, he triggered off a cult war between Black Axe and Vikings confraternity.

“This war led to the killing of one Emmanuel Joseph ‘M’, a member of Supreme Vikings confraternity, while one Agbojiwa Ifeanyi David and Ifeanyi Okorie sustained gunshot injuries.

“The suspect and other members of his group were arrested, charged to court and remanded in prison custody. Investigations show that upon release from prison custody in May 2019, the suspect and Chigozie, who is also a student of UNN, formed a gang that started yet another cult war, which claimed about eight lives in Nsukka, Enugu state,” he disclosed.

He however alleged that the suspects formed a robbery gang that specialised in robbing students of their handsets and other valuables.