Niger state Police Command has arrested forty-four suspected armed robbers and others for criminal conspiracy, thuggery and being in possession of dangerous weapons.
All the suspects will be charged with capital offences and without bail conditions for peace to reign in Minna the state capital.
There had been incessant reports of miscreants clashes, thuggery, and pockets of tricycle robberies in parts of the Minna metropolis unabated in the past few months during which some lives and properties had been lost.
Areas mostly affected are Stadium Junction, Limawa, Angwan-Daji, Bosso road, Flamingo junction, Morris junction, and Barkin-Sale and this had been causing public unrest, inflicting serious injuries on victims and dispossessing unsuspecting members of the public of their valuables.
A Statement signed by the state Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Wasiu Abiodun and made available to our Correspondent in Minna, the state capital yesterday said the Command had not been resting on its oars towards providing security to the people of the state and promised to do more.
“In a bid to curtail this recent trend and menace the Police on Monday mobilized its tactical teams comprised of Operations Department, CTU, Anti-kidnapping unit, tactical support team, Area Command team, various patrol units in the metro and vigilante members led by the Deputy Commissioner of Police, Operations DCP Ali Hayatu Kaigama and conducted house to house raid sting operation within Minna, the state capital and made the arrests.
“Areas identified as black spots and consequently raided are Limawa, Angwan-Daji, Paida, Gwadebe, Anguwan-Sarki, Ogbomosho road, Kasuwan-Gwari, and its environs within Minna metropolis and ended up with the arrest of the suspects and different types of dangerous weapons,” the statement added.”
Those arrested according to the Statement are between the ages of 15-25.
Some of the dangerous weapons recovered from the suspects according to the Police include cutlasses, scissors, knives, Swords, Garotte, Sticks, Handset phones, Shisha pipes/Pots, a big saw, scale, an iron bar, a bottle containing illicit drugs, lighter, screwdriver, bunch of keys, and ATM cards
All the suspects have been transferred to SCID for discreet investigation and they will be arraigned in court for prosecution with capital offence charges.
DSP Abiodun said the state Commissioner of Police, Ogundele Ayodeji has called on criminals still within Minna, the state capital to leave the state immediately in their own interest pointing out that the operation will be a continuous exercise towards ensuring that Minna metropolis is rid of all elements of criminals.
