Lagos Police Recovers 188 Arms, 280 Ammunition

Rebecca Ejifoma

Following the 21-day grace period the Inspector General of Police (IG), Ibrahim Idris, gave for all suspected criminal in possession of illegal and prohibited firearms to hand them over to the police, the Lagos State Police has recovered 188 arms and 280 ammunition from bandits voluntarily.

The Lagos State Commissioner of Police, Edgal Imohimi, confirmed this at the Command Headquarters Ikeja yesterday. “The firearms mop up exercise yielded positive result in the command in our fight against crime.”

Some of the arms recovered were: 38 pump action rifles, six AK47 rifles, 12 double-barrel rifles, 11 single-barrel rifles, 70 single barrel locally made cut to size short guns, 42 locally-made double-barrel short-gun, 18 locally-made revolver pistol, three Barrett’s pistol – all serviceable. The ammunition are 220 cartridges and 60 7.62 MM AK 47 ammunition.

However, he warned that those still in possession of other illegal firearms should surrender it to the police.

“Failure to voluntarily surrender those arms, the police will move into the second phase of the exercise.”

According to him, the second phase of the mop up firearms is where the police would search from house to house with credible information that there are categories of firearms and arrest will follow.

He said: “But I’m hoping it won’t come to that. So, take advantage of the grave period.”

He, therefore, beckoned on Lagosians to provide information on whoever was in possession of firearms as efforts to rid the society of crime.