Plateau State Police Command has disclosed that it has arrested eight suspected kidnappers, even as it assured residents of the state of its commitment to provide watertight security before, during, and after the Christmas and New Year celebrations.
Addressing newsmen in Jos, Plateau, on Friday, the State Commissioner of Police, CP Batholomew Onyeka, disclosed that the command has deployed all operational and intelligence assets at its disposal as well as devised the best crime detection and prevention strategies to effectively police the entire state to ensure hitch-free celebrations.
“I have also directed supervisory officers to ensure that their personnel maintain a polite but firm and professional attitude in the discharge of their duties, as they will be vicariously liable for any form of the unprofessional act by officers under their command.”
He commended the peace-loving people of Plateau state for their peaceful conduct during two major political parties’ presidential campaigns held in the state recently and appealed to the supporters of those parties in the state to replicate such a laudable posture in subsequent campaigns and the forthcoming 2023 general elections.
The State Commissioner of Police further pointed out that tricycle operations within Jos metropolis and Bukuru on the 25th and 26th of December, 2022, have been suspended while the ban on motorcycles is still in force, adding that the use of fireworks, firecrackers, and knockouts are totally banned before, during, and after the Christmas and New Year celebrations.
He, therefore, appealed to the general public, especially traditional rulers, religious leaders, parents, and guardians, to warn and discourage their subjects, congregants, children, and wards, respectively, from purchasing and lighting these devices.
Meanwhile, the command has arrested eight suspected kidnappers in Jos North and Mangu local government areas of Plateau state.
The Commissioner of Police said acting on a tip-off from a reliable informant, one Ashiru Ibrahim, aged 22 years old, of Angwan Rogo, Jos, who was suspected to have kidnapped one Abubakar Sadiq Nazifi, aged 4 years old, of Zam Zam, Abuja Mata Rikkos, was arrested by hawk-eyed police operatives attached to “A” Division of the Command at Leichester Hotel Area in the process of collecting a three-million-naira ransom from the victim’s parents,
He said upon interrogation, the suspect made some useful disclosures that led to the rescue of the victim from the kidnappers’ den unhurt, adding that further investigation led to the arrest of his accomplice, one Bashir Saleh of Rikkos, Jos, who initiated the kidnap.
Also, CP Onyeka stated that in November this year, a case of kidnapping was reported at the Anti-Kidnapping Unit of the Command by a complainant that some unidentified gunmen invaded his brother’s compound at Gidan Dabat Village, Qua’anpan Local Government Area of the state, and kidnapped his wife, one Talatu Dayil Ayuba, and Dangnan Danladi, both females, to an unknown destination until a ransom of two million Naira was paid to their captors before they were released.
According to him, on receipt of the report, the anti-kidnapping operatives swung into action and arrested eight suspects in connection with the kidnap, adding that upon
During interrogation, the suspects confessed to having conspired, perpetrated the crime, and collected the sum of two million naira as ransom.
He pointed out that all the suspects will be charged in court as soon as the investigation is completed.
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