The Abia State Police Command has recovered 28 human skulls and other human bones from suspected criminal camps in forests around Isuochi and Nneato communities in Umunneochi Local Government Area of the state.
The shocking discovery was made during an intelligence-led security operation conducted on Sunday, September 27, 2026, as police tactical teams raided suspected criminal hideouts in the area.
The command’s spokesperson, Maureen Chinaka, disclosed the development in a statement, saying the operation involved personnel from the Violent Crime Response Unit, Anti-Kidnapping Unit, Anti-Cultism Unit, Intelligence Response Unit, Rapid Response Squad and Isuochi Police Headquarters.
According to Chinaka, the operatives raided suspected criminal camps around Umuaku and Isuochi, as well as another camp in Nneato.
She said the suspected criminals fled into the forest when the police tactical teams arrived, leaving their camps deserted.
“The criminal camps were subsequently scattered,” Chinaka said.
During a search of the abandoned camps, police operatives discovered the human remains believed to be linked to victims of kidnapping.
“A total of twenty-eight (28) human skulls and bones, which we suspect are kidnap victims, were recovered,” Chinaka stated.
The police spokesperson disclosed that some of the remains were already decomposed, making immediate identification difficult.
She said preliminary findings suggested that the remains could belong to persons allegedly kidnapped and taken into the forests by criminal groups, but stressed that investigations were still ongoing to establish their identities and determine the circumstances surrounding their deaths.
No arrest has so far been made in connection with the discovery, as the suspected criminals reportedly escaped before the arrival of the security operatives.
The police command said efforts were ongoing to track down the fleeing suspects and unravel the circumstances surrounding the recovery of the human remains.
