National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) member Jennifer Elohor has narrated how she and her colleagues were brutalised by suspected members of the Anambra State Vigilante Group.
The incident occurred on July 13 around 5 p.m. at the lodge where Elohor and other corps members were staying in Oba, Idemili North Local Government Area.
Speaking in an interview with media personality Aprokoking, Elohor said the assailants broke into their apartment after pounding on the door aggressively.
“At first, we thought it was our neighbours’ door because it’s a three-storey building with several flats. But the knock became louder and more aggressive, so I decided to check. Before I could reach the door, it was kicked open,” she said.
Elohor explained that a masked gunman stormed into the room without showing any identification.
“At first, I thought it was an armed robber until he ordered all of us to come outside. I tried to explain that we were corps members and even suggested showing our NYSC identity cards. My colleagues also presented theirs, but the men ignored us,” she recounted.
She stated that the intruders ransacked the room, seized phones and laptops and assaulted them.
“They pushed us downstairs, almost shoving me down the staircase. They kept asking what gave me the right, as a woman, to challenge them. It was when we got outside that we saw their vehicle and discovered they were from the Anambra Vigilante Group,” she added.
She alleged that when they asked to inform their lodge proprietor or NYSC officials, the operatives became more violent.
“They beat me, tore my clothes, and even hit one of my colleagues with an iron rod for pleading on my behalf. They forced me into their vehicle, pressing my neck, slapping me, and threatening to smash our phones if we contacted anyone,” Elohor said.
A video of the assault went viral on Tuesday, showing the operatives accusing the corps members of being internet fraudsters despite their NYSC uniforms and identity cards. Elohor was seen being beaten and stripped while crying for help.
The video triggered outrage on social media, with Nigerians demanding justice.
The Haven 360 Foundation, which released the footage, described the assault as “particularly egregious” in Elohor’s case, noting that she was “stripped naked, left exposed, covered in blood, and subjected to sexually degrading threats.”
Former Anambra governor and Labour Party presidential candidate Peter Obi also condemned the act, calling it “primitive wickedness and savagery.” Nollywood actress Adaeze Eluke said the brutality was “totally unacceptable.”
The Anambra State Government later confirmed that the vigilante operatives involved have been arrested, sacked, and detained.
First Lady Nonye Soludo disclosed that she had reached out to Elohor and invited her to the Government House. “There is absolutely no justification for such a cruel and humiliating act of abuse,” she said.
Human rights lawyer Prof Joy Ezeilo (SAN) called for justice, saying: “Every woman deserves respect for her dignity, privacy, and bodily autonomy.”
