The murder of Ahmad Gulak, a former presidential assistant, in Imo State in 2021 was heard by a Federal High Court in Abuja on Wednesday.
The court also heard how the actions of the Indigenous Peoples of Biafra and its armed wing, the Eastern Security Network, resulted in the deaths of 170 to 200 security personnel in the South East.
The court also heard that Nnamdi Kanu, the arrested self-proclaimed leader of IPOB, was not granted a license by the National Broadcasting Commission to import the radio transmitter he allegedly sneaked into the nation to run Radio Biafra.
In his evidence as the fourth prosecution witness in Kanu’s continuing terrorism trial, a Department of State Services staffer provided the depositions.
One ESN member, identified as Uzuoma Benjamin, also known as Onye Army, testified before the court that they allegedly received orders from Kanu to kill security personnel and make sure that a deceased group member, Ikonso, was buried with 2000 human heads. The witness was led in testimony by prosecuting attorney Adegboyega Awomolo (SAN).
According to the DSS official, more research showed that just 30 of the 2000 human skulls that were sought to bury Ikonso were ultimately located.
The witness also recited a statement made by the aforementioned Onye Army, according to which he and other members of his group prepared charms for the protection of ten ladies by using their heads.
According to him, an investigation showed that Kanu ordered his followers to attack and murder security personnel of the Federal Government of Nigeria in one of his broadcasts, which led to the IPOB militants’ invasion of Owerri jail.
The witness claimed that the DSS sent a letter to the NBC asking them to examine the transmitter immediately after he and his team members had taken it from a location in Ubuluisiuzor, Anambra State, and transported it to Abuja.
The witness informed the judge that NBC dispatched an engineer on November 9, 2015, to assess the transmitter and prepare a report.
Then, Awomolo presented a certified authentic copy of the NBC’s provisional assessment of the radio transmitter report.
The witness complied with the request to read a section of the report. According to him, the report showed that the transmitter was German-made and that it was, in fact, a radio transmitter designed for FM usage.
According to the witness, the report also said that Radio Biafra had not been granted a license by NBC to broadcast in Nigeria and that such a transmitter could only be purchased and placed after receiving a license.
The DSS official went on to say that his team’s inquiry had shown that in order to run a radio station in the nation, one needs apply to a regulator, who will grant a license following the necessary approval by the appropriate security authorities.
“The defendant in Kanu’s case did not submit an application; he brought the transmitter in unlawfully without authorization,” the witness stated.
Additionally, he stated that the inquiry had verified that the defendant was the owner of the transmitter, which he had stored on Benjamin Madubugu’s property.
According to the witness, Kanu later entered the nation, examined the transmitter, and produced a film to appease IPOB members who had donated funds to buy it.
Additionally, he read from the Vanguard newspaper that an ESN leader who had been detained had admitted to the group’s activities.
He said that the police claimed Onye Army had escaped from custody when the DSS asked them to grant access.
“We saw some ESN members, about seven, with human heads and some eating human flesh, which they said was for spiritual fortification,” he said, referring to a raid on the hideaway by DSS agents.
“Onye Army was nowhere to be found. According to the authorities, he had gotten out of custody.
According to him, there are data indicating that between 170 and 200 security agents have supposedly been killed in the South East.
The witness claimed that all security agencies were affected and that two DSS officials, including his driver, were among the victims.
According to the witness, the ESN members are armed militants who have attacked the residences of local leaders and notable figures.
He claimed that they occasionally put up roadblocks during which they take over automobiles for their operation because they lacked adequate operating instruments.
The witness named several public buildings, including police stations, that he claimed were attacked and demolished in the South East by IPOB and ESN militants.
Regarding Gulak’s death, the witness stated that he was one of the first people to arrive at the scene of the late politician’s murder and the recovery of his body.
In one of his broadcasts, he claimed that the defendant’s stay-at-home order caused a complete collapse of law and order on May 30, 2021.
The witness claimed that later that day, one of his officers told him that a well-known politician had been killed in the Obiagwu area, and that they had witnessed the incident when they arrived at the scene.
He claimed that the local Divisional Police Officer (DPO) informed him that Gulak was killed by some IPOB members while riding in a leased taxi.
According to the witness, the driver informed him that they were traveling from Owerri town to the airport when they noticed a checkpoint set up by Nigerian Air Force personnel barring people from entering. They chose to take a different route, but they encountered an IPOB checkpoint along the way.
The driver went on to say that the IPOB members told the three people in the car to get out and asked to know their tribes.
He claimed that Gulak also identified himself as an Igbo man, and the driver informed him that he had introduced himself as such. However, when they asked Gulak to speak Igbo, he (the driver) was able to do so, but Gulak was unable to do so. They then ordered him to take off his cap, and they noticed a Muslim prayer inscribed on his forehead.
According to the witness, the driver also stated that one of the IPOB militants declared, “He is one of them,” after which they shot and murdered him after noticing the prayer marked.
The DSS officer informed the court that the deceased’s body was removed from the scene of his death in his (the witness’) vehicle. He claimed to have served in Imo State from 2019 to 2023.
The witness stated during cross-examination by defense attorney Onyechi Ikpeazu (SAN) that there is no documentation of the importation of the transmitter that Kanu is alleged to have smuggled into the nation.
Although he was one of those who found the transmitter’s storage location in Anambra State and transported it to the DSS headquarters in Abuja, he claimed he was unable to determine when the transmitter was brought into the nation.
In response to a question about whether he knew that Radio Biafra was based in London and had its headquarters there, the witness stated that Kanu’s broadcast equipment was taken with him when he was detained in Lagos in 2016.
He claimed that all he mentioned regarding the defendant’s arrest in Lagos was what was communicated to him because he was not there when it happened.
