How Mbah is Turning Enugu into a No-Go Area for Criminals

Governor Peter Mbah’s aggressive investment in intelligence, technology and inter-agency security operations is yielding results, with Enugu increasingly demonstrating its capacity to disrupt kidnapping networks and protect residents, businesses and investors, writes Gideon Arinze

For Governor Peter Mbah of Enugu State, the fight against insecurity is not merely about responding to crimes after they have occurred. It is increasingly a deliberate strategy to make the state hostile to criminal networks, strengthen the capacity of security agencies, restore public confidence and create an environment where residents, businesses and investors can operate without fear.

That strategy is beginning to produce measurable results. The latest breakthrough came with the arrest of 14 suspected kidnappers linked to a network that has allegedly operated across Enugu and several other states, including Rivers, Kogi, Nasarawa, Kwara, Taraba and the Federal Capital Territory.

The arrests, according to the Enugu State Police Command, have opened another major window into the operations of organised kidnapping syndicates that had previously exploited interstate boundaries, local intelligence networks and the difficult terrain around some communities.

The suspects were paraded by the Enugu State Commissioner of Police, Mamman Bitrus Giwa, who disclosed that the Command had recovered five AK-47 rifles, two pump-action rifles, one locally fabricated firearm, 310 rounds of live 7.62 x 39mm ammunition, eight live cartridges and seven empty AK-47 magazines.

For a state that has had to contend with kidnapping and other violent crimes in some locations in the past, the message is that Enugu’s security agencies are becoming increasingly capable of tracking criminals beyond the point of attack.

This is precisely the security environment Governor Mbah has sought to create since assuming office. The governor’s approach has been anchored on the understanding that security is foundational to virtually every other ambition of government.

A state cannot attract investment if businesses are afraid to operate. It cannot expand tourism if visitors are worried about their safety. It cannot create jobs if economic activity is disrupted by criminality. It cannot persuade residents to invest their resources locally if they lack confidence in the ability of the state to protect lives and property.
Mbah has therefore consistently connected security to his broader economic transformation agenda. His administration has set an ambitious target of growing Enugu’s economy from about $4.4 billion to $30 billion. But the governor has acknowledged that such an objective would remain largely aspirational if the state could not first establish an environment of safety and stability.

This explains why security has received such prominence in the administration’s development strategy.
The recent police operation demonstrates how that investment is increasingly translating into operational capability.
According to Giwa, two of the suspects arrested were linked directly to the August 2 kidnapping incident at St. Joseph’s Catholic Church, Inoyi-Affa, in Udi Local Government Area.

Following the attack, security agencies intensified operations to locate the perpetrators. Two of the suspects reportedly fled Enugu and regrouped with their associates in Port Harcourt. Rather than allowing the movement across state lines to frustrate the investigation, security operatives maintained the pressure.

The suspects were eventually arrested following further intelligence-led operations by the Command’s Anti-Kidnapping Violent Crime Response Unit.

The development is significant because organised criminal groups often rely on mobility as a shield. They exploit the boundaries between states, moving from one jurisdiction to another after carrying out operations. A successful security response therefore requires more than police presence at crime scenes. It requires the ability to gather intelligence, follow suspects, share information and sustain investigations across jurisdictions.

That is increasingly the model being pursued in Enugu. The police said preliminary investigations had linked the arrested suspects to several kidnapping operations, including incidents along the Enugu-Ugwuogo-Opi-Nsukka Road, the Obioma-9th Mile-Umulumgbe-Okpatu axis, the Eke-Affa-Egede-Ezinze corridor and other locations in Ezeagu Local Government Area.

Investigators linked the suspects to the May 25 abduction of a male victim at Mgbabuowa/Aguobuowa in Ezeagu, during which a ransom of N5 million was reportedly collected. They were also linked to the May 9 abduction of two male victims at Obioma, Udi, during which a female victim was allegedly shot and killed and $28,700 reportedly obtained as ransom.

Another case involved the April 10 abduction of two male victims along the Eke-Ezinze Road, for which the gang allegedly obtained $70,000. In another incident on April 12, seven people were reportedly kidnapped at Obinaofia, Ezeagu, with N25 million allegedly paid as ransom.

Taken together, the cases indicate that the security challenge was not the work of isolated criminals acting spontaneously. Rather, the police described an organised network with members operating from different parts of the country.

The network allegedly had local support within Enugu, including individuals who provided transportation and intelligence.

One Enugu-based member, according to the police, operated a tricycle and allegedly transported gang members, firearms and other criminal equipment to and from operational locations. Another allegedly supplied information that helped the gang evade security surveillance and identify targets.

This aspect of the investigation is particularly important because it demonstrates that combating insecurity is not simply a matter of confronting armed criminals in forests or on highways. It also requires dismantling the support systems that enable them to operate.

Governor Mbah’s administration has repeatedly emphasised this broader understanding of security.
The state’s investment in intelligence, surveillance and technology is designed not merely to react to criminal activity but to identify threats early, improve coordination and provide security agencies with the information required to intervene.

One of the most important components of this architecture is the ultramodern Enugu State Command and Control Centre, supported by AI-enabled cameras deployed across the state.

The significance of this infrastructure was recently underscored by security experts from the National Institute for Security Studies, Abuja, who visited Enugu as part of the Executive Intelligence Management Course 19 study tour.
Dr. Olusola Opa-Ola, a staff member of the institute, singled out the command-and-control infrastructure for commendation, describing it as a potent tool for combating insecurity.

His assessment provides an independent indication of how the state’s security investments are being perceived by professionals whose work is directly connected to national security and intelligence management.
According to him, the command-and-control system had assisted the state in curbing insecurity, identifying grey areas and improving its ability to prevent crime.

He urged other states to study and replicate the model, arguing that stronger state-level security infrastructure could reduce the pressure on the Federal Government and enable state governments to respond more effectively to security threats.

The recommendation is significant because it reinforces a central element of Mbah’s security philosophy: government must have the political will and institutional capacity to invest in security.

For years, insecurity in different parts of Nigeria has frequently been discussed in terms of insufficient personnel, inadequate equipment, poor intelligence and weak coordination. While those challenges remain relevant, the Enugu experience suggests that deliberate investment in infrastructure and coordination can substantially improve the state’s ability to respond.

The command-and-control centre provides the technological backbone. Intelligence gathering provides the information. Security agencies provide the operational capacity. Inter-agency collaboration provides the reach. Community cooperation provides another critical layer.

Together, these components create a security system that is considerably more difficult for criminal networks to penetrate.

The August 2 attack on St. Joseph’s Catholic Church also illustrates the administration’s determination not to allow an isolated security breach to become a permanent source of fear.

Following the attack, a joint operation involving the Department of State Services, Nigerian Army, Police, Enugu State Forest Guard and other security personnel reportedly engaged the suspected kidnappers in a gun battle.

Three suspects were subsequently arrested, while one of the alleged criminals died during the operation.

Two of the three kidnapped victims, Seminarian Lawrence Igbo and Emmanuel Onwudi, regained their freedom and reportedly identified the arrested suspects as their abductors.

The administration’s message, as conveyed by Secretary to the State Government Prof. Chidiebere Onyia on behalf of the governor, was unequivocal: criminals may run, but they cannot hide indefinitely.

That stance has become one of the defining characteristics of the state’s security response. Rather than treating insecurity as an inevitable condition, the administration has sought to establish the principle that criminality carries consequences.

The government has also sought to draw a clear distinction between ordinary citizens and those who actively facilitate criminal operations. While citizens are encouraged to cooperate with security agencies, those who provide information, transportation, logistics or other assistance to criminal networks are being warned that they too will face investigation and prosecution.

This is critical because organised kidnapping thrives on local support. Criminals may carry the weapons, but they often require local intelligence to identify vulnerable targets, understand terrain, monitor security movements and escape after an operation. Breaking that chain of support can be as important as arresting the gunmen themselves.

The police investigation into the 14 suspects has reportedly uncovered precisely such a structure. The suspects allegedly concealed or invested proceeds from their criminal activities in livestock and properties, while some of the money was also spent on lavish lifestyles and foreign trips, including journeys to Cameroon. This points to another dimension of the security challenge: kidnapping has become a business model for organised criminal groups.
The objective of dismantling such networks therefore cannot end with the arrest of gunmen. Authorities must also follow the money, identify assets acquired with ransom proceeds, establish financial links and prevent criminal enterprises from converting illicit wealth into legitimate-looking investments.

The Enugu Police Command has indicated that investigations are continuing to determine the suspects’ involvement in other crimes and identify additional members of the network.

That continuing investigation could prove as important as the arrests themselves. Every additional suspect identified, every weapon recovered, every financial trail followed and every intelligence gap closed weakens the network’s capacity to reorganise.

It is also an indication that the state’s security strategy is moving beyond episodic operations towards sustained pressure. This is where Mbah’s security policy intersects with his economic agenda.

Security is not simply a law-enforcement issue. It is an economic development issue. A safer Enugu creates the conditions for increased investment. Increased investment creates jobs. Jobs expand household incomes. Expanded incomes stimulate consumption. Productive economic activity expands the state’s revenue base, which in turn gives government greater capacity to invest in infrastructure and social services.

Security is therefore the foundation upon which the rest of the agenda rests. For a state determined to transform its economy and reposition itself as an investment destination, making security not just a response to insecurity, but an essential pillar of development will definitely be one of Governor Mbah’s most consequential achievements