Police nab 79 suspects in Akwa Ibom

OPERATIVES of the Akwa Ibom State Police Command have arrested 79 suspects over various offences in the month of January.

Commissioner of Police, Olatoye Durosinmi, who disclosed this, said the suspects were arrested for crimes including murder, kidnapping, armed robbery, and cultism.

He said: “As we strive daily to keep the state safe, criminal elements also have continued to try to perpetrate nefarious acts. In January alone, 79 criminal elements were arrested for various crimes. The greatest achievement within the last one month was the arrest of 10 confessed kidnappers, who were planning to unleash mayhem on the state, as well as the recovery of four AK- 47 rifles.

“On January 16, at about 3: 45 p. m., operatives of the Ibiono Ibom Division, relying on credible intelligence, stormed the Ibiaku Ikot Oku forest, where over 15 heavily armed suspects were camping and engaged them in a gun duel. Some of the suspects absconded with bullet wounds while four were arrested and one AK- 47 rifle was recovered. A swift follow- up operation by the anti- robbery unit of the command led to further arrest of six suspects and the recovery of three more AK- 47 rifles.”

The commissioner said the suspects came from neighbouring states to cause havoc in Akwa Ibom, adding that they confessed that they were planning to kidnap an expatriate involved in construction work along the Calabar- Itu highway.

He pleaded with the people of Akwa Ibom for cooperation and information to ensure criminal elements are arrested. He said the suspects will be charged to court as soon as investigations are concluded.