The Enugu State Police Command has strongly refuted circulating reports alleging deadly attacks by Fulani herdsmen in Uzo-Uwani Local Government Area, describing the claims as entirely fictitious. Police Public Relations Officer Daniel Ndukwe issued a statement Wednesday dismissing media narratives of 25 fatalities and mass displacements as “deliberate misinformation designed to undermine security operations.”
Authorities labeled the reports—which cited unnamed sources and used unverified casualty figures—as dangerously sensational. “These fabricated accounts employ vague terminology like ‘at least’ that violate basic journalistic standards,” Ndukwe stated, referencing Commissioner Mamman Giwa’s condemnation of the “malicious falsehoods” allegedly intended to stoke ethnic tensions.
The rebuttal comes amid heightened sensitivity in Nigeria’s southeast, where historical farmer-herder conflicts have fueled distrust. While acknowledging ongoing security challenges, the police emphasized that no such mass casualty incidents occurred in the specified communities. Investigators suspect the viral reports may be linked to attempts to destabilize recent peacebuilding efforts between agricultural and pastoralist groups.
Security analysts note the denial follows a pattern of authorities pushing back against unverified attack narratives that often trigger retaliatory violence. The command urged media outlets to verify information through official channels and reassured residents of continued patrols in rural hotspots.
This controversy emerges as joint police-military operations intensify along the Kogi-Edo border, where authorities recently neutralized a kidnap syndicate and arrested 13 suspects.
