The Police Command in Ekiti, on Wednesday, paraded 13 persons over alleged robbery, rape, conspiracy and unlawful possession of firearm.
The command’s Spokesman, ASP Sunday Abutu, while parading the suspects in Ado-Ekiti, said that their arrest was a product of the renewed onslaught against crime and criminality by the police in the state.
He said that the Commissioner of Police in the state, Tunde Mobayo, had prioritised the security of lives and property, and consequently mandated the command’s operations department to go after all criminal elements.
Abutu said that the directive had yielded results, particularly with the arrest and parade of the suspects.
He said that a gang of armed robbers, numbering 12, had on Jan, 20, at about 02 a.m., raided students’ hostels, located on Federal Polytechnic road, Ado-Ekiti.
The police spokesman said that some students of the Federal Polytechnic, Ado-Ekiti, were recently robbed of their belongings at gun point in their apartments.
He said two of the suspects were intercepted and arrested by the command’s operatives on patrol while departing the scene of the robbery.
He said that valuables belonging to the students, including phones, were found in their possession.
Abutu said that the command launched serious manhunt on the assailants, which led to the arrest of four other members of the gang in their hideout at Falana Street, Ajilosun area of Ado-Ekiti.
He added that some of the stolen items were recovered from the suspects.
The police spokesman said that the suspects, upon interrogation, confessed to committing the crime and mentioned five others as members of their gang.
Abutu said further investigations also led to the arrest of the concubine of one of the suspects who used to keep her lover’s gun before and after any operation.
He also said that a team of police operatives, on Jan. 27, at about 02:30 a.m., arrested two suspects, while two others escaped from the scene with their gang’s operational guns.
The police image maker said that the two suspects made confessional statements and confirmed their membership of the armed robbery gang, comprising the suspects earlier arrested.
He said that all the suspects confessed that they formed the gang and started robbing with arms immediately after the disbandment of SARS in October 2020.
“They stated that they were responsible for the armed robbery attacks on innocent citizens of Ekiti in about 90 houses in Ado-Ekiti and its environs,” he said.
Abutu mentioned such places as Embassy Inland, Ado-Ekiti, Ajebamidele area and Niran students’ hostel on Poly road, Ado-Ekiti, where two female students were raped.
He said that the hoodlums also carried out their operation in Agogo community, Ilupeju Avenue, Ado-Ekiti in 2021, where a night guard, Joseph Blessing, was killed as well as in Irewolede Estate on Ilawe road, Ado-Ekiti and Oke Ureje quarters, also Ado-Ekiti.
Abutu said the confessions of the suspects led to the arrest of another suspect in Ijare town, Ondo State who allegedly made and sold four locally-made pistol to them for their operations.
He listed the items recovered from one of the suspects to include: one Barreta pistol, 12 locally-made guns, two expended cartridges, 12 metal files, two metal hand saws and gun making tools.
Abutu disclosed that on Jan. 1, at about 1:45 a.m., three suspects were also arrested by a team of RRS operatives for allegedly receiving stolen items from the robbery gang.
He said one suspected stolen Bajaj Boxer motorcycle was recovered from them.
Abutu said that investigations revealed that all the arrested suspects were ex-convicts who had served different jail terms in the Correctional Centre, Ado-Ekiti and Olokuta Correctional Centre, Akure, Ondo State.
Abutu said that efforts were on to arrest fleeing members of the gang and the recover other stolen items from them. (NAN)