Tompolo, Former Militant Leader Appears After 4 Years of Being Wanted

A Former Niger Delta militant leader, Government Ekpemupolo a.k.a Tompolo recently made his first public appearance in 4 years after being declared wanted by Nigeria security agencies.

The former Militant leader who had gone dark in 2015 after the Federal Government deployed troops to arrest him shortly after Muhammadu Buhari was sworn in as Nigeria’s President in 2015.

Before then recall also that Tompolo was declared wanted in 2016 following two bench warrants issued against him by a Federal High Court in Lagos, where he was charged with N45.9bn fraud.

Speaking in a court after the declaration was made; the anti-graft agency told a federal judge that the whereabouts of the former militant leader was unknown. The EFCC further disclosed that all the security agencies can’t find him.

Minister of state for Labour, Festus Keyamo who was a counsel to the EFCC at that time said;

“We wish to inform the court that the warrant of arrest that this court issued in respect of the first defendant (Mr. Ekpemupolo) has not been ‎executed despite the best efforts of all the security agents in this country.

“Every security agent in this country is involved in the search for the first defendant. What is unfolding is something that has never been seen before in this country for a very long time.”

However on July 15, 2019 a federal court dismissed the charges against Global West Vessel Specialist Ltd, a company linked to the former Niger Delta militant leader.

 His first public appearance 4 years after he was declared wanted, Tompolo was seen dancing to an Ijaw song with his kinsmen who wore traditional outfits. According to eyewitnesses, he made a mysterious appearance at the Egbesu shrine in his Oporoza country home in Gbaramatu, Delta State.