A prosecution witness in the ongoing trial of Nnamdi Kanu, the leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra, on Wednesday, alleged that the agitation and violent attacks carried out in the South East were triggered by Kanu’s inciting broadcasts on Radio Biafra.
The witness, a Department of State Services (DSS) operative identified as PWDDD told Justice James Omotosho of the Federal High Court, Abuja, that Kanu’s broadcasts ordered attacks on specific individuals, including security personnel, and directly contributed to the killings of up to 200 security agents in the region.
Led in evidence by the federal government’s lead counsel, Adegboyega Awomolo, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, the witness also linked the murder of former presidential aide, Ahmed Gulak, to Kanu’s alleged directives to members of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) and its armed wing, the Eastern Security Network (ESN).
He said the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) confirmed that the transmitter used to broadcast Radio Biafra, which was allegedly imported by Kanu without proper authorization from the government.
The DSS said it seized the equipment in a compound in Ubuluisiuzor, Anambra State, and presented NBC’s technical report to the court.
The witness also cited confessions from a detained ESN commander, identified as Uzuoma Benjamin alias “Onye Army,” who claimed that the group received instructions from Kanu to attack security formations and kill government agents.
He said the same commander confessed that the group used human heads to prepare charms and that Kanu allegedly directed that a fallen ESN commander, Ikonso, be buried with 2,000 human heads.
According to the DSS operative, intelligence also tied the April 2021 prison break in Owerri and the destruction of police stations and public infrastructure in the South East to Radio Biafra broadcasts inciting violence.
On the murder of Ahmed Gulak, the witness said he was part of the first responders to the scene of the killing in Imo State on May 30, 2021, a day the court was told coincided with Kanu’s “sit-at-home” broadcast.
He narrated how Gulak, who was in a commercial cab en route to the airport, was stopped by IPOB gunmen who demanded to know the occupants’ tribes. According to him, Gulak, who failed to speak Igbo, was identified by a prayer mark on his forehead and eventually executed.
The witness also alleged that during raids on ESN hideouts, DSS operatives encountered members with human heads and others eating human flesh for purported spiritual protection.
He said two DSS operatives, including his driver, were among the security agents killed by the group between 2019 and 2023, during his service in Imo State.
During cross-examination by defence counsel Onyechi Ikpeazu, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, the witness admitted there was no documented record showing when or how the transmitter was imported into Nigeria.
He also said the transmitter was traced to its Anambra location using video analysis equipment and that two firearms were discovered separately under a mattress belonging to one Benjamin Madubugu.
He told the court that the container holding the transmitter was imported by one Igwe Anyiba, who now lives abroad. He denied knowledge of any involvement by Benka Clearing and Forwarding or Chief Isaac Maduka, names mentioned by the defence.
When asked whether he was aware Radio Biafra was registered and broadcast from London, the witness said Kanu was arrested in Lagos in 2015 with his broadcast equipment, though he admitted not being present during the arrest and relying on information from colleagues.
He also said he was unaware that the Imo State Government had released a statement suggesting that Gulak’s murder was politically motivated.After cross-examination,
Justice James Omotosho adjourned the case to June 19 for continuation of trial.
