Abuja, Aug 5 (IANS): At least eight people were shot dead when a group of unidentified gunmen attacked a local community in Nigeria's southern state of Imo, police said.

The eight deceased were identified as village heads in the Umucheke community of Onuimo Local Government Area, Aboki Danjuma, Imo State police commissioner, told the media during an on-the-spot assessment of the incident on Sunday morning, reports Xinhua news agency.

Danjuma said at least six gunmen, who rode on three motorcycles, stormed the community to wreak havoc late Saturday. They identified the homes of the deceased, perpetrated the killings, and fled through a bush path.

Alleging that members of the outlawed Indigenous People of Biafra/Eastern Security Network, an armed group in the southern part of the country, were responsible for the attack, Danjuma said security agencies are currently combing nearby forests in search of the perpetrators of the "dastardly act."