Anambra police say at least 12 people have been arrested as investigators pursue those responsible for the killing of Awka-based comedian and town crier Isaac Nwosu, popularly known as Aiza Nwosu.
Police say the arrests form part of a wider investigation into Nwosu’s killing and other suspected cult-related killings in Awka.
But the arrests do not establish that all those detained took part in Nwosu’s killing.
Police also say a principal suspect remains at large and that the investigation is continuing.
Nwosu was shot in Awka
Nwosu was killed in Awka in late August after gunmen opened fire.
Early police reporting said he was shot along S.M. Okeke Street, Amaikwo, while another man was killed in a separate incident elsewhere in the city that night.
At that stage, police had not publicly established a motive for Nwosu’s killing.
More recent police statements have placed the case within a wider investigation into suspected cult-related killings in Awka.
That remains the police investigative frame.
It should not be treated as an independently established motive unless evidence later confirms it.
Police report at least 12 arrests
Police spokesman SP Tochukwu Ikenga said at least 12 people had been arrested in connection with the investigation into Nwosu’s killing and other suspected cult-related deaths.
Police also said investigators were still pursuing a principal suspect.
The exact relationship between every detainee and Nwosu’s killing has not been publicly established.
An arrest is an investigative step.
It is not a conviction, and it does not establish that each detained person participated in the killing.
Any criminal responsibility must be tested against the evidence relating to each individual.
Jennifer’s detention becomes a separate controversy
The investigation has also produced a separate dispute over the detention and release of Nwosu Chikamso Jennifer.
The Rule of Law and Accountability Advocacy Centre, RULAAC, says Jennifer told the organisation that she was arrested on August 31 and detained for four days while police were looking for her brother.
RULAAC says Jennifer alleged that ₦600,000 was paid on September 3 before she was released on administrative bail.
The organisation also reported her allegation that no receipt was issued for the payment and that her phone was taken without a property receipt.
Those claims have not been independently established.
Jennifer should therefore be treated separately from the broader arrest count unless police provide a clear account showing whether she is included within it.
Police deny collecting ₦600,000
Anambra State Police Command denies demanding or collecting ₦600,000 for Jennifer’s release.
Police say her detention and release were connected to the ongoing investigation and have challenged those alleging extortion or corruption to produce evidence.
The command also says investigators had information alleging that Jennifer communicated with a person of interest on the night of the incident and alerted him that police were closing in.
That remains a police allegation.
It is not proof that Jennifer committed an offence, assisted a suspect or participated in Nwosu’s killing.
Conflicting accounts require evidence
The ₦600,000 dispute cannot be resolved by treating either side’s account as established fact.
RULAAC says Jennifer initially alleged that money was paid before her release.
Police deny demanding or collecting the money and say she later denied that such a demand or payment occurred while being questioned in the presence of her lawyer.
RULAAC says that later account conflicts with what she previously communicated to the organisation.
The contradiction creates a clear accountability question.
Was any money demanded or paid?
If so, who received it, through what channel and for what stated purpose?
If not, what explains the conflicting accounts?
Those questions require documentation rather than assertion: payment records, communications, custody records, property documentation and statements from the people involved.
The killing remains the central case
The dispute over Jennifer’s detention should not obscure the central public-interest question:
Who killed Aiza Nwosu, and what evidence connects any specific suspect to the crime?
Police say the investigation remains active and that a principal suspect is still being sought.
That means the killing remains unresolved.
The reported arrests are developments in the investigation, not findings of guilt.
The police position that the case is connected to a wider pattern of suspected cult-related violence also remains subject to evidence.
The accountability test
There are now two distinct questions requiring answers.
The first is whether police can identify and prosecute, with evidence, those responsible for Nwosu’s killing.
The second is whether Jennifer’s detention and release complied with the law and whether the disputed ₦600,000 allegation can be independently proved or disproved.
For the killing, the public needs case-level evidence connecting specific suspects to the crime.
For the police-conduct allegation, the public needs a transparent account of Jennifer’s custody, release, any property taken from her and whether any money changed hands.
Aiza Nwosu’s killing remains under investigation. Police say at least 12 people have been arrested, but those arrests do not establish guilt. The ₦600,000 allegation against police also remains disputed rather than proven.