After the military hunted and gunned down, Don Warney’s, the gang leader of the group that mauled down nearly 20 worshippers returning from a Cross-over church service on new year day in Omoku, Rivers State, another member of the gang nabbed by the Police has narrated how the killings were planned and executed.
Arrested in Mpape, Abuja, Desmond Okotubo, according to a statement by the Police spokesman, CSP Jimoh Moshood, told how they were armed and moved into to shoot down residents.
The father of three told journalists earlier why the gang carried out the heinous massacre.
“The arrest and humiliation of the mother of Don Waney, coupled with the destruction of Waney’s mansions was the main reason for the New Year attack in Omoku.”
According to him, members of the Omoku vigilante group members were their original targets, because they fished out Warney’s mother and pointed out his house for government demolition. When the members were not found, the gang turned on the worshippers.
According to Moshood in his statement: “This principal Suspect, Desmond Okotubo 32yrs, is a Native of Egbenma from Onelga LGA Rivers State Confessed to be one of the masterminds of the gang and actively participated in the killings of innocent people in Omoku Rivers state on the New Year day. He further gave details of how they planned the Operation in Awara Town Imo State before they carried out the act.
“The suspect, Desmond Okotubo also revealed to the Police how their Gang leader Don Wanny gathered them and briefed them on the night of 31st January, 2017 on the mission to attack and kill the residents of Omoku town. Thirty (30) of them Armed with over Twenty (20) AK47 Rifles crossed the river from Awara to Omoku forest and proceeded to Omoku town and opened fire on innocent Citizens celebrating the new year.”
The police statement gives the background to Okotubo arrest: “Concerned by the Gruesome Murder of Innocent people in Omoku Rivers state on the 1stJanuary, 2018 by the vicious and Notorious kidnap for ransom and cult syndicate leader Don Wanny and his gang. The Inspector General of Police, IGP Ibrahim K. Idris, NPM, mni set-up special Police joint investigation team, comprising the IGP-Intelligence Response Team, the Force Criminal Intelligence and Investigation Department, Force Department of Operations and the Rivers State Police Command to immediately unravel those behind the killings and bring them to Justice.
“The IGP-Intelligence Response Team attached to the Joint Police Special Investigation Team engaged some of the suspects in their hideouts in Awara Forest boundary between Imo and Rivers State, the shoot out lasting several hours resulted in the death of six (6) of the suspects while others escaped with bullet wound injury to other locations in Rivers, Delta, Imo and Bayelsa States and the Police Teams are currently on their trail.
“The IGP-Intelligence Response Team working on an actionable intelligence further identified Desmond Okotubo who escaped on the 3rd January, 2018 to Abuja after a shoot out with the Police Team in a location in Imo State, he was trailed to Mpape in Abuja where he was arrested after serious resistance on the 9thJanuary, 2018.”
The police said it is intensifying nvestigations to arrest other members of the gang still at large to get to the root of the matter adding that Okotubo will be arraigned in court on completion of investigation.