A 25-year-old final year student of Public Administration, Abia State Polytechnic, Aba, Samuel Effiong, who was among the suspects paraded by the Abia State Police Commissioner, Mr. Leye Oyebade, has confessed to being a cultist and not an armed robber as alleged.
But the CP said Effiong was arrested for robbery.
The suspect however, insisted that he was a member of the Supreme Viking fraternity and was arrested after a revenge mission on a rival cult group, the Black Axe.
Effiong narrated that members of the Black Axe had attacked a member of his group, robbed him of his phone, money and inflicted machete cuts on him prompting the revenge mission.
“We had a problem with another cult group who attacked one of our members and collected his phone. He reported the matter to us and we decided to intervene immediately.
“While going to meet them, we saw some members of Black Axe group.
“We asked them why they attacked our member and we also asked them to return the phone but they refused to give us the phone.
“Then, we started fighting. “I was sleeping in my house when the police came and arrested me.
“The guns (which the police recovered) are not mine; I don’t know how they got the guns.
“They searched the premises where I was living and got a gun and said it is mine. I have sold the phones we collected from them Black Axe members.”
CP Oyebade said Effiong was arrested in an uncompleted building at Umuwaya Ohuru Isimiri, Aba alongside his accomplice, Obioma Ubani, adding that the suspect and four others robbed the occupants of 16, Anyaumunna Street, Eziama, Aba of their belongings.
