From TONY JOHN, Port Harcourt
Rivers State Police Command said it has arrested 200 persons at different locations in the state, for their involvement in kidnapping, armed robbery, car snatching and other criminal offences.
The suspects were paraded by the Commissioner of Police, Mr. Okon Effiong, at the command’s headquarters, Moscow Road, Port Harcourt, yesterday.
The Commissioner of Police disclosed that they were arrested within a space of three months of his resumption in office.
Effiong recalled that at his maiden briefing, he promised to ensure a peaceful Rivers State, free of all forms of criminality, and warned the suspected criminals to steer clear of the state.
The State Police boss said “Within this period of three months between October 5 and December 30, we have arrested 22 suspected Kidnappers, we arrested 27 armed robbery suspects, we have recovered 21 arms, 136 ammunition, 30 live cartridges, 11 live magazine and eight vehicles.
“We rescued 11 kidnapped victims, raided 15 criminal hideout and arrested 145 persons during the raid, four illegal refining sites discovered and destroyed, 18 suspected kidnappers and armed robbers neutralized during gun battle and three police officers were killed and one injured and still in the hospital.”
Assuring the safety of Rivers residents during and after the new year celebration, CP Effiong warned “Those who are planning to commit last hour crime before the new year, should steer clear of Rivers state. There is lockdown against criminality in this state.”
The CP narrated: “On November 24, 2022, some hoodlums kidnapped one Mr. Seni Awosika MD of KIPES Group Gas and Oil Company and the Project Manager at Rumuokoro flyover Port Harcourt. That kidnap suspects claimed the lives of three Mobile Police Officers. Operatives of the Command swung into action and arrested the hoodlums.
“On December 3, 2022, some of the kidnappers left their camp to negotiate the payment and exchange of United State Dollar collected as ransom to Naira. The Police Operatives C4i Intelligence Unit traced them to Edepie Junction in Yenegoa, Bayelsa State.
“In the gun battle that ensued, the leader of the Police team was shot on the leg. Two of the kidnappers were neutralized. The sum of $1,700 was recovered from the hoodlums. Subsequently, further investigation led to the arrest of two other members of the eight-man gang.”