Four Ebonyi men jailed for vandalising EEDC property

The management of the Enugu Electricity Distribution Company has announced the conviction of four persons for their involvement in vandalising the company’s property in Ebonyi State.

The Group Head, Corporate Communications, at the EEDC, Mr Emeka Ezeh, disclosed this on Thursday.

One of the convicts, Chukwuma Onwe, was on November 12, 2025, sentenced to four years imprisonment by Hon. Justice John Igboji at the High Court of Ebonyi State of Nigeria, Ohaukwu Judicial Division, sitting in Ezzangbo.

His conviction followed a three-count charge of conspiracy, damage and unlawful disconnection of transformer armoured cables, and stealing, contrary to the Ebonyi State Criminal Code, Cap 33, Laws of Ebonyi State of Nigeria 2009.

On the conspiracy charge, Onwe received a three-year sentence, while the charges of vandalism and stealing earned him four years each. All terms are to run concurrently.

According to Ezeh, he was arrested by the police in September 2023 for vandalising a transformer belonging to the electricity firm at Ntsulakpa, Ezzangbo community, Ebonyi State.

In a similar development, on November 7, 2025, the same court sentenced Okefe Stanley, Aleke Kingsley, and Egba Friday to four years imprisonment each for vandalism, unlawful disconnection, damage, and removal of aluminium conductors belonging to the EEDC.

The trio was sentenced to three years for conspiracy and four years each for vandalism and stealing, and all terms were to run concurrently.

The EEDC spokesman said they were arrested on June 5, 2023, by the vigilante group of Oshituma Community in Ohaukwu Local Government of the state.

The management of the EEDC lauded the judiciary for the judgments and appealed for the speedy trial of other pending vandalism-related cases in courts.

“We are pleased with these judgments and hope that they serve as a deterrent to those engaging in such criminal acts out there,” he stated.

“A few months back, precisely in August, in the same Ebonyi State, four vandals – Ikechukwu Esseh, Ikedinachi Uche, Ukpai Godwin, and Uchenna Kalu – were sentenced to seven years imprisonment by Hon. Justice Nicholas E. Nwode for attacking a 7.5MVA Injection Substation belonging to EEDC, at Education Board Road, Afikpo, in Afikpo North Local Government Area of the state.”

The EEDC expressed appreciation to the Nigeria Police and the vigilante group of Ohaukwu community for their vigilance and unwavering commitment to combating this menace, noting that this aligns with the company’s long-standing call for community collaboration in safeguarding critical electricity infrastructure.

He lamented the negative impact of vandalism on the company’s operations, stressing that the company has continued to commit scarce resources to restoring vandalised/damaged equipment – funds that could have been deployed to enhance service delivery.

He urged customers to remain vigilant and safeguard electricity installations within their neighbourhoods, warning that vandalism inevitably results in service disruptions and inconvenience.