Molly Kilete, Abuja
The Nigerian Army has said its soldiers deployed for election security operations in Osun State arrested three suspected hoodlums trying to disrupt the conduct of elections in the area.
According to the acting director, Army Public Relations, Colonel Sagir Musa, the hoodlums were arrested at Iwaraja Junction in the state.
Musa, in a statement, said the suspects, who were operating on a motorbike, were also in possession of arms and ammunition at the time of their arrest. He listed the weapons found on them to include one locally made pistol, one cutlass, three cartridges, three mobile phones, one iPad, one Peace Corps cap, one Peace Corps identity card and N14,300.
He said the suspects would be handed over to the police as soon as investigation was concluded.
“Troops of Operation Safe Conduct deployed to provide security/conducive atmosphere for the conduct of free, fair and credible presidential and National Assembly elections in Osun State, at Iwaraja Junction, on Saturday, February 16, 2019, at about 0730hrs intercepted three hoodlums on a motorcycle moving towards Ilesa East Local Government Area to disrupt the smooth conduct of the 2019 general election in that area.
“The following items were recovered from the hoodlums after the arrest: one locally made pistol; one cutlass; three rounds of cartridges, three mobile phones, one iPad, one Peace Corps face cap, one Peace Corps identity card, and the sum of N14,300.
“Those arrested will be handed over to the police upon completion of initial profiling and investigation,” he said.