Police Arrest 17 For Armed Robbery, Kidnapping In Nasarawa

The suspects

The Nasarawa State Police Command has paraded 17 suspected armed robbers and kidnappers, who were arrested in separate raids on criminal hideouts across the state.

The state Commissioner of Police, Bola Longe, who paraded the suspects, in Lafia on Wednesday, said they were arrested in connection with several cases of armed robbery and kidnapping within and outside the state capital.

Items recovered from one of the suspects, whose name was given as Yakubu Umar (21), included a gun, iron rod, cutlass, black mask, various charms and amulets as well as one round of 7.62mm ammunition.

Umar’s accomplices, said to be members of his robbery gang, are, however, still at large.

Longe said the command had strengthened its operations by employing modern techniques, which had started yielding the desired results.

Giving a breakdown of the arrests, the CP explained that on March 12, 2019, a case of criminal conspiracy, membership of an unlawful society and illegal possession of firearms was reported at the Masaka Police Station in the Karu Local Government Area of the state after a number of suspected cultists went on the rampage destroying properties and unleashing terror on innocent members of the public.

He said, “On the strength of the report, our patrol team and its intelligence arm swung into action and four suspects were arrested. They are Benjamin Audu (20); Ishaku Galadima (19); Zacheaus Amos (21); and Nuhu Danjuma (21).

“Still on March 13, while on a combined patrol by the personnel of the Nigerian Army and the police, one Peter John, a 22-year-old man from Agyaragu village, was arrested while he and members of his gang were robbing along the Lafia/Makurdi Road.”

Longe noted that his men swung into action as soon as vigilant members of the public tipped them off.

Following the police action, an unregistered Nissan Pathfinder Sport Utility Vehicle was recovered from the hoodlums.

According to him, investigation by the police revealed that the vehicle was stolen from Imo State and was already a subject of investigation by the Imo State Police Command.

The police boss explained that on April 3, operatives of the Anti-Robbery Squad in Mararaba Udege, based on a report received from a patriotic citizen, cordoned off a criminal hideout located deep inside a bush and arrested three suspects.

Those arrested included a 50-year-old man, who was fingered as the supplier of essential commodities such as food and other provisions to criminals during operations.