Niger Delta Weekly Update for July 03-09, 2022

This weekly update highlights the growing prevalence of mob violence and vigilante related killings in the Niger Delta. According to data (see map below), mob lynching and vigilante related violence caused over 300 fatalities in the Niger Delta between January 2019 and March 2022. Recent data shows an upsurge in mob lynching and vigilante related killings throughout the region, driven mainly by rising cases of criminality including robbery, kidnapping for ransom and rituals, and a lack of citizen’s trust in the law enforcement agencies and the penal system in the country. In April 2022, for instance, two robbery suspects were reportedly burned to death by a mob in Ikot Ansa community in Calabar, the Cross River state capital. In May, a teenage robbery suspect was reportedly killed by a mob in Auchi town in Etsako West LGA, Edo state. In June, a suspected member of a cult gang who doubles as a robber was reportedly killed by a mob in Uyo, the Akwa Ibom state ca pital. More recently, on July 03, 2022, three robbery suspects were reportedly killed by a mob in Abayi community in Isiala-Ngwa North LGA, Abia state.