By Jeff Agbodo

Abakaliki: About 180 detainees arrested during the Ezza/Effium communal crisis in Ohaukwu Local Government Area of Ebonyi State have been released from the Abakaliki Correctional Centre due to insufficient evidence to prosecute them.

The Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice in Ebonyi State, Ben Odoh, ordered their discharge after a review revealed a lack of sufficient evidence to sustain charges against the detainees.

The male detainees were arrested in 2021 following the Effium/Ezza crisis, which stemmed from a leadership tussle over market toll collection in the area. The initial clash at the Effium Motor Park escalated into a full-blown communal war between Effium and Ezza-Effium people, resulting in numerous deaths and property destruction worth billions of naira. Despite interventions by the then-state government led by David Umahi, the violence persisted.

In a letter addressed to Magistrate Lynda Ogodo, Odoh stated that the available evidence did not support charges of conspiracy or incitement of war.

The letter read in part:

“Pursuant to Section 167(1) of Ebonyi State Administration of Criminal Justice Law 2019, I hereby inform you that the record of the proofs of evidence does not, in my opinion, disclose sufficient evidence to sustain the charge of conspiracy and incitement of war contrary to Section 516(A)(a) and 42 of the Criminal Code Cap 33 Volume 1 Laws of Ebonyi State of Nigeria 2009 or any other offense against the defendants.

“You are therefore kindly requested to summon the defendants and have them discharged,” the Attorney General ordered.

The detainees, natives of the war-ravaged Effium community, were released as part of Governor Francis Nwifuru’s peace initiatives to restore stability to the area.

The discharge exercise commenced on February 5, 2025, at various courts in Abakaliki, the Ebonyi State capital.