The Police Command in Kano State has arrested 132 suspects for alleged kidnapping, armed robbery and illicit drug dealing in two months in different parts of the state.
” We have arrested 65 suspected thugs (Yandaba), 22 suspected thieves, 25 suspected drug dealers, 11 kidnapping suspects and 9 suspected illegal Forex hawkers from January to date in different parts of the state.
Commissioner of Police Hussaini Gumel told the News Agency of Nigeria NAN in Kano on Friday that the command also arrested motor vehicle thieves, motorcycle thieves, tricycle thieves, human trafficking suspects and suspected fraudsters, among others during the period.
Gumel also revealed that the command rescued four kidnap victims, two human trafficking victims and made recovered items and goods during the period.
They include two AK-47 rifles, one locally made pump action and four live cartridges.
He said that from Jan 1 to date, all forms of major crimes such as armed robbery, kidnapping, cattle rustling, car theft, drug dealings, thuggery, had significantly been reduced in all parts of the state.
“The previous threats of daylight and night mobile phone armed robbery are now a story of the past with no single record in the last two months.
“The Police command has been supported to fight more than two decades of public outcry on cases of missing children, abduction and kidnapping of minors.
” The trend has been significantly surmounted as further efforts were ongoing to recover more and to unite the children with their biological parents,” he said.
Gumel also stated that the command was able to smash and dismantle trans-border syndicates of motor vehicle thieves with the arrest and recovery of a large number of vehicles.
“The chain of illicit drug dealings has also been dismembered. Many drug dealers were arrested and a large number of some of the illicit drugs were recovered.
On banditry along the 17 front-line state’s border local government areas, Gumel said the command had engaged with the sister security services in series of raids and joint operations.
He said this had cleared their camps and hideouts through which they were infiltrating to the soft target locations, which had significantly reduced banditry, kidnapping and related crimes.
He also said that the seasonal farmer/ herder clashes prevalent in Makoda, Sumaila and Tudun Wada local government areas had been curtailed with continuous community policing engagements.
“Robust collaborative policing and the sustained synergy with all security agencies in the state has been one of the vehicles yielding the positive results the police command is achieving.
“All these achievements by the Kano State Police Command were as a result of the compliance and following up with the vision, mission and guidance of the IGP Egbetokun. (NAN)
By Aminu Garko