From Ighomuaye Lucky, Benin
Edo State Police Command, yesterday, paraded 23 male and seven female suspected cultists arrested from various locations in the state.
Addressing newsmen at the state command during the parade of the suspects, the Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), SP Chidi Wanbuzor, said the arrest was made possible following the directive from the Commissioner of Police, Abutu Yaro, to rid the state of cultists and other criminal elements.
SP Wanbuzor said the police operatives of Anti-cultism Unit of the Edo State Police Command conducted raid exercises in different parts of the state for criminals’ hideouts and black spots and arrested a total of 23 male and seven female suspects.
Wanbuzor said they all made their statements and confessed being members of different cult groups in the state. He added that the Commissioner of Police, Edo State, Abutu Yaro, noted that the campaign against the criminal elements in the state has yielded result with the arrest of 30 cultists in the state.
He said that the development would serve as a warning to others in the state, either to repent or relocate. He said the Commissioner of Police has directed that the raid would be a continuous exercise to ensure that the state is rid of criminal elements.
Wanbuzor said the suspects have made confessional statements and would be charged to court upon completion of their investigations.