Authorities in Anambra State have arrested Friday Obeta, a 37-year-old member of the Movement for Actualisation of Sovereign State of Biafra (MASSOB), for allegedly planning to enforce a sit-at-home order across the South-East region on May 30, 2025. The sit-at-home was declared by the group to honor the memory of those who died in the Nigerian civil war (1967-1970).
SP Tochukwu Ikenga, spokesperson for the Anambra State Police Command, disclosed that the Rapid Response Squad in Nnewi arrested Obeta following intelligence on his activities. The police recovered a motorcycle, a branded t-shirt, and an operational identification card of MASSOB from the suspect.
“Operatives of the Rapid Response Squad, Nnewi Sector, acting on credible information on how the proscribed Movement for Actualisation of Sovereign State of Biafra has set out plans to enforce sit-at-home on May 30, 2025, arrested one Friday Obeta aged 37 years,” Ikenga said.
Obeta reportedly admitted to being both a member and informant for MASSOB and has provided information aiding investigations into other members. The Commissioner of Police, CP Ikioye Orutugu, has instructed officers to intensify their efforts to prevent unlawful gatherings and maintain public order. “He further urged them to step up surveillance operations to thwart any unlawful gathering in the state,” the statement added.
This development highlights the police’s commitment to curbing activities that threaten peace in Anambra and the wider South-East region.
