Amotekun arrests 7,000, prosecutes 1,500 suspected criminals in Ondo

From Bamigbola Gbolagunte, Akure

The Ondo State Commander, Western Nigeria Security Network (WNSN), otherwise known as Operation Amotekun, Mr Adetunji Adeleye, has disclosed no tat fewer than 7,000 criminals have been arrested by the security outfit.

The corps commander said out of the 7,000 arrested, about 1,500 of them have been charged to court. He added that the security outfit has secured judgement of many of them, while the crisis of farmers/herders clashes has reduced by over 95 percent in the last two years.

Adeleye, who doubles as the special adviser to the governor on security matters, disclosed this while featuring at a programme organised by the Correspondent’s Chapel of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) tagged: “The Platform”.

The commander, who is also the Chairman, Council of Amotekun Commanders in South-West, recalled that the corps, which was founded on January 9, 2020, in Ibadan, Oyo State, as the first regional security outfit, initiated by the governors of the South West geopolitical zone, has recorded tremendous success in checkmating activities of course criminals in the region.

He said: “We have secured judgement of many of the criminals. At a time when the turnout of criminals was becoming unmanageable for the judiciary, the government of Governor Oluwarotimi Akeredolu graciously approved the building of two courts to assist the judiciary in prompt dispensation of justice.”

Adeleye said the birth of the Amotekun Corps in the state has made the state to be adjudged one of the most peaceful states in the country.

Furthermore, Adeleye explained that since inception, the corps has summarily dismissed four erring officers who ran foul of the laws and rules guiding the operation of the corps, while several others had been sent to detention to ensure that they conform with the norms and standard operations of the organisation.

Adeleye noted that the issue of farmers/herders clashes in the state has reduced by over 95 percent in the last two years, courtesy of Amotekun intervention.