The police offensive against perpetrators of violence in the
country has yielded result with the Operation Puff Adder outfit arresting of 93
suspected kidnappers with high caliber weapons.
Force public relations officer, Mr. Frank Mba said in a statement that a rocket launcher and 45 AK47 rifles were recovered from the bandits who were picked up in some parts of the north central, northwest and northeast.
He said a comprehensive investigation had begun to track and disrupt sources of arms supply, as well as apprehend and bring to justice sponsors and collaborators of violent acts.
“The unrelenting and aggressive counter-kidnapping strategies of the police in the fight against kidnapping and other heinous crimes in the country have continued to yield positive results as police operatives attached to Operation Puff Adder recorded yet another harvest of criminal elements.
“A total of 93 kidnap suspects were arrested from different parts of the north central, north western and north eastern parts of the country. In addition, operatives of Operation Puff Adder recovered one rocket launcher, 35 AK47 rifles, 10 locally-made AK47 rifles and 500 live ammunition.
“Also recovered from the hoodlums are eight locally-made revolver pistols, 10 pairs of military camouflage uniform, two operational vehicles, and other incriminating items,” he said.
He said the crackdown on the criminals was a joint effort of the Operation Puff Adder, Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS), police mobile, counter-terrorism and force intelligence unit; intelligence response team and the special tactical squad, among others.
“Police investigators backed by their counterparts in the Forensic and Technical Intelligence units have commenced comprehensive investigation of all the 93 suspects arrested in these operations.
“The investigations among other things are aimed at tracking, uncovering and disrupting the sources of arms supply to the criminal groups, as well as identifying their collaborators, and bringing all involved in these heinous crimes to justice.
“The operations leading to these arrests and recoveries were carried out by joint team of police operatives attached to Operation Puff Adder, North-Central sector.
“The team consists of detectives from the Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS), Force Intelligence Unit, Intelligence Response Team (IRT) and the Special Tactical Squad (STS). Other operatives in the Joint Mission include personnel from the Police Mobile Force (PMF) the Counter Terrorism Unit (CTU), Special Protection Unit (SPU) and the Special Forces.
“The massive achievements recorded by the Nigeria Police Force within the last few days are in line with the objectives and core mandates of Operation Puff Adder as an initiative of the inspector general of police, Ag. IGP M. A. Adamu, aimed at curbing all kinds of violent crimes within our society.
The achievements are also indicative of the fact that the security agents are now winning the war against the criminal elements,” he said.
Mba quoted the inspector general of police as commending police operatives for their sacrifice and resilience and reiterating the commitment of the police to restore sanity on the highways and inner cities.
He expressed his gratitude to the general public for providing credible intelligence that has helped the police in achieving the successes recorded so far.
Similarly, the Edo State police command arrested four suspected members of Boko Haram who escaped into the state after committing atrocious crimes in neighbouring Kogi State.
The commissioner of police in the state, Mr. Mohammed DanMallam, told NAN in an interview in Benin that the suspects were apprehended on a tip-off in their hideout in Afuze, Edo north.
On interrogation, the commissioner said the one of the suspects confessed to have killed 40 of his victims, while another confessed to have escaped from Koton Karfi Prison in 2014 having participated armed robbery operation in Ekiti State in 2013.
DanMallam said the suspects would be handed over to the police in Kogi State for further interrogation as their crimes were perpetrated in that state.
He also said Operation Puff Adder in the state had arrested 34 suspects in connection with armed robbery while four were arrested in connection with kidnapping.
More so, he said 32 suspected cultists had been arrested, 10 different arms and 215 rounds of ammunition recovered, nine victims of kidnapping rescued 11 vehicles recovered since the launch of the operation on May 2.
