If you truly love history, you probably know about the confrontation between Prophet Eddie Nawgu and the Bakassi Boys. Eddie Nawgu, whose real name was Edwin Okeke, was a self-described prophet, sorcerer, and religious leader from Nigeria. Among Igbo people, he was most known as Eddie Nawgu in the mid-1990s. Because he was from the Nawgu village, a town in the Dunukofia L.G.A. of Anambra State, Nigeria, he went by the moniker “Nawgu.”
Eddie “Nawgu” Okeke, 29, declared at the age of 29 that he had been touched by the Biblical God and was endowed with the capacity to “see” and “perceive” things that the human eye and other four senses were unable to detect.
He constructed a building like a church and called it the “Anioma Healing Centre” not long after he started his ministry. He claimed that the “Anioma Healing Center” was founded with the intention of healing the sick and giving people hope again, but that wasn’t really the case. A few years later, rumors about his illegal actions began to circulate. For example, during a 1990 session, believers were instructed to bless two guys for whom the prophet had earlier prayed for a breakthrough (it turned out that the pair had successfully smuggled hard drugs into Europe without being detected). The self-described prophet of God was now being investigated for multiple crimes that had been committed in the state of Anambra as well as in the community.
This caused him to come to the notice of the Bakassi boys, a vigilante security group led by the former Anambra State governor, Chinwoke Mbadinuju. Their mission was to find and apprehend criminals, sponsors of criminal gangs, and dubious-looking men. Eddie Nawgu was accused of kidnapping, supporting notorious criminals, engaging in rituals involving the use of human body parts—such as the skull—illegally possessing firearms, and sacrificing human beings. He shot to the top of their “most wanted list” as a result.
They flipped the entire space around. The others were observing the child as he performed. When they inquired about the location of my husband’s gun, I answered, “Which guns?” They requested pump-action and handguns, but there was only one double-barrel gun available. I informed them that we lacked any.
Saying, “I will cut off your head if you don’t give us those guns,” one of them raised his machete. Nothing was discovered by them. “Turn your back, or I’ll chop off your head,” he yelled. He hurled his machete in my direction, raised it, then dropped it. They assured me that if they didn’t find what they were looking for, they would take me and my husband. Accompanying them, I instructed a girl to shut the door. I was asked if I wanted to show them anything by one of the Bakassi.
“No, they were only children in there,” I responded. We had the door locked as the kids were afraid. The Bakassi desired to fire. There are kids in there, I remarked. To which children, he inquired? The ones that you market? I requested that the kids open up. The Bakassi simply peered inside before departing. I heard the Bakassi gunfire outside in the interim. I revealed them to you. Some were in front of me, and some were behind. All I had on was my pajamas and a wrapper.
All my husband had on was his shorts. They’d tied his hands with his shirt. I could see Bakassi everywhere outside. People in the compound had been forced to lie face down outside by them. They were using machetes to strike them in the back. She continued, saying, “They led me in the direction of the gate.” Up ahead, I could see my spouse and a group of roughly fifteen Baskassi folks. I was ten or fifteen steps away. A Bakassi behind me was asking me to move , but another Bakassi threatened to shoot me if I drew any closer. The person in front of me questioned whether I was deaf and made a gun threat.
I should go forward, so said the person behind me as well.I said, “I don’t know what to do,” and I stood motionless. Mrs. Okeke also described how, after hearing gunshots in her father-in-law’s compound for approximately an hour, the Bakassi lads stole three of their automobiles and detained her father-in-law, elder brother-in-law, and another relative. She added that by midday, the Bakassi lads had returned and had taken all of their vehicles and personal information. They had also asked once more for hidden firearms, which they stated her husband had requested. Many businessmen and current governors, including a former president of Nigeria and a warlord in West Africa, were reported to have begged for his release at that time.
It was said that when he was being held captive, he admitted to a number of heinous deeds and claimed to be especially skilled at creating powerful charms that could help their wearers vanish from uncomfortable circumstances. In exchange for money, he would sacrifice a developing foetus and a pregnant woman. The total number of people killed for these purposes was estimated to be ninety-three, and 16 missing children from an Onitsha maternity were linked to him. He concocted concoctions by killing 3-day-old babies and bathing the subject with the remains.
After getting his hair shaved, he was reportedly unable to sleep for the rest of his incarceration.
He was reported to have asked to be thrown into the River Niger several times before the Vigilante chopped him into pieces and set him ablaze at the Ochanga Market Square in Onitsha. He also reportedly told everyone he had given a walking stick over the years to dispose of it in the same river when he passed away. He was wed to Joyce Okeke, with whom he shared eight biological children. A panel of inquiry was established by the state government investigate the case following Eddie Okeke’s death. The panel’s conclusions were never made public, it lacked legal standing, and it lacked the authority to order more action from the government.
The Nigerian film Onye Amuma, which portrayed the ascent and decline of Eddy Nawgu, was devoted to the man and starred Nkem Owoh as a false prophet. Issakaba, a 2000 Nigerian film directed by Lancelot Oduwa Imasuen, was made in the wake of Eddy Nawgu’s death and was dedicated to him. It was divided into four parts. The first chapter, in which Nigerian actor Zulu Adigwe played a false prophet, depicted the vigilante group’s inception as well as the enormous effort made to capture Eddy Nawgu.
Eddy Nawgu was honored in the Nigerian film The Last Prophet, which starred Zulu Adigwe in the character of a false prophet.
