Criminality: Edo Police Command arrests 993; 162 are Armed Robbers.

The Police in Edo said they arrested 993 suspected criminals, including 162 armed robbery suspects between Sept. 22, 2016 and April 6, 2017.

The Edo Command also said it prosecuted no fewer than 135 of the armed robbery suspects in the last six months, adding that the state was no longer a safe haven for criminals.

The Commissioner of Police in the State, CP Haliru Gwandu, made the disclosure in Benin on Friday.

Gwandu said that while 52 of the arrested 57 kidnapping suspects were prosecuted, the command also prosecuted 436 suspected cultists out of the 482 arrested suspects.

The CP disclosed that operatives of the command made additional arrest of 123 suspects over murder and prosecuted 103 of them.

He said 169 suspects were also arrested for heinous crimes like unlawful possession of fire arms.

CP Gwandu noted that the Edo Command recovered 56 stolen vehicles, pointing out that men and officers of the command had been mobilized to rid the state of criminal elements.

He opined that the stoppage by government of revenue collection by unauthorized persons and idleness were some of the factors responsible for the increase in crime in the state.

Gwandu said the recent state government’s ban on the activities of Community Development Associations and the influx of repatriated Edo indigenes from Libya were also contributory factors to the high crime rate in the state.

He, however, advised youths to gainfully engage themselves in profitable legal ventures and stay out of trouble.

The commissioner appealed to the government to sustain its current drive at creating jobs for youths in the state.

Gwandu said there was need to continually recruit personnel to effectively fight crime in the country,

while tactical teams of the SARS and highway patrol vehicles were deployed to ensure safety on the roads. 

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