A well-known celebrity native doctor, popularly known as Akwa Okuko Tiwaraki n’Oba, has been arrested by local vigilante operatives, Agunechemba.

His arrest was confirmed in a short video posted on Anambra State New Media handle on Facebook on Saturday.

The native doctor was apprehended on Saturday in Oba, Idemili South Local Government Area of the state.

“Akwa Okuko Tiwaraki n’Oba denies Okeite and has been detained for further investigation by the security agency,” the post read.

Sources said the traditional ruler was taken to the office of the Deputy Governor, Dr. Onyeka Ibezim, for interrogation.

According to a video circulating on social media, the deputy governor questioned him.

While being probed, Akwa Okuko denied involvement in ‘Oke Ite.’

In Igbo language, ‘Oke Ite’ means big pot.”

“I have long stopped doing ‘Oke Ite’. That thing is not a charm. We just gave it the name ‘Oke Ite’ because we put it in a pot,” he stated.

Responding, the deputy governor said: “We need to take him to where he does these things. We will investigate him, and of course, we need to know where he does these things.”

Akwa Okuko has been in the news of recent.

In July 2023, he was kidnapped by gunmen and spent some days in captivity before a ransom was allegedly paid to facilitate his release.

There are also allegations that he prepares charms for kidnappers who guise as internet fraudsters, terrorising the state.

To quell criminal activities in Anambra, the Governor Charles Soludo-led administration promulgated the Anambra State Homeland Security Law in 2025.

The law imposes harsh measures on native doctors who prepare or administer charms, including the infamous ‘Odeshi’, ‘Okeite’, and ‘Mkpu Egbe’.