The lifeless body of Justice Azuka, the member representing Onitsha North 1 Constituency in the Anambra State House of Assembly, has been discovered along the 2nd Niger Bridge, 44 days after his abduction.
Azuka’s decomposing body was found by a joint team of security operatives in the early hours of Thursday. His abduction occurred on December 24, 2024, when he was kidnapped at gunpoint on the Ugwunaobankpa Road in Inland Town, Onitsha, while returning home for Christmas.
The lawmaker, a prominent figure in the Labour Party, had regained his seat in a court ruling that ousted the previous winner, Douglas Egbuna of the Peoples Democratic Party, following a disputed 2023 election.
The kidnapping, carried out in a swift operation that lasted less than five minutes, left no immediate trace of the perpetrators, sparking widespread shock and concern throughout Onitsha. The discovery of Azuka’s body has only deepened the anxiety over escalating insecurity in the region.
This marks the second time in less than three years that a sitting lawmaker from Anambra has been abducted and killed. In May 2022, shortly after Governor Prof. Chukwuma Soludo assumed office, gunmen abducted Okechukwu Okoye, the lawmaker for Aguata 2 Constituency. Okoye was later found beheaded alongside his aide, Cyril Chiegboka, after six days of captivity.
In Azuka’s case, a police source, who wished to remain anonymous, confirmed that the individuals responsible for the kidnapping led security forces to the location of the body after their arrest in the early hours of Thursday.
“The kidnappers were arrested by a combined team of operatives from Abuja. After their capture, they took the security officials to the spot where they had disposed of the body. The body has since been transferred to the morgue in Onitsha,” the police source said.
SP Tochukwu Ikenga, spokesman for the Anambra State Police Command, confirmed the discovery but withheld further details about the arrests. He said the joint security team was still handling the scene, and ongoing investigations were in progress.
In a statement issued Thursday, the Labour Party caucus in the House of Representatives expressed their shock and sorrow at the loss of their colleague. Afam Ogene, the LP caucus leader and representative for Ogbaru Federal Constituency, described the incident as “horrendous, heart-rending, and a significant blow to both the Labour Party and the legislature.”
Ogene also reiterated his earlier calls to Governor Soludo for urgent action to address the escalating insecurity in Anambra, which has seen an alarming rise in kidnappings and killings. He extended his condolences to the grieving family of the late lawmaker, particularly his wife and children, who are now left in deep mourning.
