From Yakubu Mustapha Minna
Police Command in Niger state has arrested no fewer than 12 suspects for various crimes committed in the state.
This is in a continued effort to eradicate crime and criminality in the state, based on information received that some miscreants who specialized in robbing victims of handsets and motorcycles were sighted in Morris area of Minna.
This was contained in a statement issued by the Niger State Command, Police Public Relations Officer PPRO, DSP Wasiu Abiodun, who said on receipt of the information, a team of Police operatives attached to the Tactical Support Team of the Command mobilized to the scene and arrested the suspects.
According to Abiodun, the suspects are Jibrin Ndako (J.boy) 22yrs of Barkin-Sale, Minna, Moh’d Usman (Smally) 20yrs of Sauka-Kahuta, Minna, Kure Musa 25yrs of Kpakungu, Minna respectively.
He said in the course of the investigation, the suspects revealed that they have been engaging in stealing motorcycles and snatching handsets, mostly at night within Minna Metropolis such as; Barkin-Sale, Kpakungu, Shiroro road, Mandela road, Soje-A, Sauka-Kahuta and its environs.
The suspects led the Police team to the four receivers who bought most of the phones in Minna and environs.
The police added that one Labaran of Obasanjo Complex who specializes in deleting IMEI number of stolen phones is presently at large.
Meanwhile, twenty-one phones were recovered from the suspects.
In furtherance to the confessions of Jibrin and Usman, a follow-up investigation revealed that about ten motorcycles were stolen at different locations in Minna and five receivers of the stolen motorcycles who bought the motorcycles within the range of #80,000 to #120,000 from five suspects were arrested at Paiko, currently in police net.
The 3 motorcycles recovered were; one Bajaj and two Jincheng motorcycles. However, all suspects are under investigation at the TST office, SHQ Dutsen-Kura Minna, while members of the public who might have been a victim may visit the office to aid the investigation process.