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By Our Correspondent
In a decisive blow to terrorism in Imo State, notorious kingpin Omerike Jubilat, the supposed second-in-command of the dreaded Ezioha terror gang, has been eliminated by a crack team of security operatives. His death comes two weeks after he brazenly promised his mother in a viral video, that he would be returning home soon and “big,” a boast ended by bullets.
Jubilat was a leading figure among the gang of terrorists which held many communities in Mbaitoli and Njaba Local Government Areas hostage for the better part of five years.
Their terror activities reached a turning point in July 2024 after a blood-cuddling operation in Umuaka, Njaba LGA..
In a display of chilling audacity, Jubilat and his gang ambushed and killed three vigilante operatives in Umuaka in one day.
Not content with the murder, the gunmen recorded videos, taunting the community, families of the slain and dancing over their corpses, an act that seared a deep wound into the community’s conscience.
That act of brutality, however, proved to be a strategic miscalculation. Instead of cowing the people, it ignited a firm resolve among the people of Umuaka.
“The Umuaka community decided enough was enough,” a local source, who pleaded anonymity for security reasons, told our correspondent. “That huge loss galvanized us. We became more determined than ever to collaborate with security forces to rid our land of these blood-thirsty hoodlums.”
That collaboration culminated in a successful intelligence-led operation last Thursday. Acting on precise intelligence, a joint team of security forces stormed a building in Umuele, Amazano, used as a hideout by the Ezioha gang, linked to the larger B44 terror camp.
The gunmen, including Jubilat, fled the scene upon the arrival of the operatives. The security team proceeded to destroy the building, rendering it uninhabitable and dismantling a key operational base.
The operation, however, was far from over. As the operatives were leaving the area, they received a critical tip-off: some of the wanted gunmen, including their high-value target, had been sighted at a nearby location and were heading towards them.
A well-crafted counter-ambush was immediately hatched. The security team laid in wait, turning the hunters into the hunted. When motorcycles carrying three AK-47-wielding gunmen, led by Jubilat himself, drove into the target area, the ambush was sprung.
In the ensuing firefight, Jubilat and his two accomplices were neutralized, bringing a violent end to the career of one of the the state’s most-wanted terrorists.
Ironically, Jubilat had made a video, about a fortnight, which had since circulated online. In the clip, a smug Jubilat was seen assuring his mother of his imminent return, boasting that he had “made it big.” The video now serves as an instructive epitaph to the unfulfilled dreams of daredevil criminal.
Public reaction to his death has been one of overwhelming relief and vindication. A comment on a social media post announcing his demise captured the prevailing sentiment: “None of you who had been killing and kidnapping innocent people will go home alive! You shall all pay for the evil you have done. Blood for blood!”
Jubilat, who hailed from Ebonyi State, was identified by security sources as the deputy to “EyePencil,” the current operational head of the B44 terror camp in Ezioha. His elimination is expected to significantly disrupt the gang’s activities and deal a heavy psychological blow to the terrorist network plaguing the state.
