Date: 2018-02-17

No fewer than 45 suspected criminals that have been terrorising Kwara State in the last two months have been arrested by the state police command.

Parading the suspected criminals in Ilorin on Friday before journalists, the state police commissioner, Alhaji Lawan Ado said that, the suspects were arrested at the different locations in the state.

He explained that, "I want to say that, 25 of these suspected criminals were arrested in connection with armed robbery while nine were arrested in connection with kidnapping activities in the state."

According to him, "the success recorded by the state police command at arresting the suspects was based on the technical intelligence information received from the members of the public in the state and this has helped the men of the state special anti-robbery squad in the state.

"On 13/2/2018 at about 0730 hours, one Abdullahi Ibrahim on Baburu compound in Lafiaji in Edu local government council of the state reported at the Lafiaji police station that while sleeping in his house with his family, five armed men invaded his house and disposed them of the sum of N65, 000 and one Itel phone valued at N5, 500 and inflicted injuries on them.

"After technical intelligence of the men of the state criminal investigation bureau, three people were arrested and they had confessed to the act."

Ado also said that, a gang of kidnapers and cattle rustlers that went away from Kwara State with over 200 cows were arrested.

He said that they were arrested in Niger State where they had escaped to.

Ado explained that the police from the Niger state command were able to arrest the suspects after his command shared with the Mokwa police station in Niger state, an intelligence about the movement of the suspects.

He said that in the process of arresting the suspects, a police corporal, Machi Yusuf who is an operative of the Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS), unfortunately lost his life.

Ado said that the policeman died in an exchange of fire with the kingpin of the kidnap gang, Adamu Abacha.

He said Abacha, after the clash, escaped to the bush and that while the SARS operatives were combing the bush for him, they found his dead body and an AK 47 riffle he buried there.

The police commissioner said 233 cows were recovered from the gang and that six live ammunitions were retrieved alongside the riffle recovered from their dead boss.

He said six of the gang members who were arrested would be charged to court as soon as investigation was concluded.

The police boss also disclosed that two people among four suspected alleged to have kidnapped a man, Hassan Taiye, in his mosque in Chikanda in Baruten local government area of the state had been arrested.

He said of the four men, two of whom were in Army uniform kidnapped the victim and took him to an unknown destination after injuring his vigilante guard with a gunshot.

Ado further disclosed that 10 motorcycles were recovered from a gang of armed robbers specialising in theft of motorcycles in Ilorin.

The police boss who said his men arrested two members of the gang after a pastor in the town reported the theft of his Bajaj motorcycle, disclosed that efforts were on to arrest the other members of the gang.