The Sokoto State Police in Northwest Nigeria have stepped up their efforts to make the state safer by arresting 14 suspected criminals in the past three months, using information gathered from intelligence sources.
The Commissioner of Police, CP Ali Hayatu Kaigama, stated this while briefing Journalists on the achievements of the command in Sokoto state.
CP Kaigama said the arrest was part of the commitments to embark on aggressive patrols, raids of criminal hideouts and visibility policing community engagements among others.
According to him, the strategies employed by the police yielded some tremendous achievements which include but are not limited to the arrest of kidnappers and recovery of firearms and ammunition in the state.
He noted that during an operation embarked by the police 7 suspected kidnappers were arrested and 6 victims were rescued.
” During the rescue operation one AK 49 rifle with two magazines loaded with 15 live ammunition, a locally fabricated pistol with 12 rounds of ammunition, a kasea motorcycle and 9 mobile phones suspected to belong to kidnapped victims were recovered from the kidnappers,” he said.
He further explained that the police were able to discover 390 rounds of AK47 rifles and a motorcycle belonging to suspected bandits in the Gada local government area of the state.
CP Kaigama, however, said the operatives of the command also rejected a bribe of N800,000 from suspects over the theft of 12 rolls of conductor aluminium wire along Brinin Kebbi road in the state.
“While on patrol the police operatives intercepted one vehicle loaded with twelve rolls of conductor aluminum wires suspected to have been vandalised and stolen from electric poles.
“During an investigation, the suspects offered my personnel the sum of N800,000 as a bribe to enable them to escape arrest which was rejected.
“Upon the investigation, the suspects confessed to having stolen the said wires from electric poles in Sanyinna village of Tambuwal local government,” he added.
CP Ali Kaigama explained that as soon as the investigation is concluded they will be charged to court for further action.
He called on people of the State especially those in possession of unlicensed firearms to voluntarily surrender such Arms to the nearest police station as soon as possible.
He said the request is in line with compliance with Inspector General Police (IGP Kayode Egbetokun’s directives aimed at curtailing the widespread proliferation of illegal arms currently in circulation across the country.
The Police Commissioner said there would be no punitive measures or any form of legal proceedings nor molestation against anyone who complied with this appeal.
