Operatives attached to the Akwa Ibom state command have arrested 79 suspects for alleged involvement in murder, kidnapping, armed robbery and cultism.
The state Commissioner of Police (CP) in the state, Olatoye Durosinmi, in a January operational report in Uyo on Friday, said the greatest achievement within the month has been the arrest of 10 kidnappers allegedly planning to unleash mayhem on the State.
The police commissioner said men of the Ibiono Ibom Division also recovered four AK 47 rifles during anti-crime operations in the Division within the period.
CP Durosinmi stated, “As we strive daily to keep the state safe, criminal elements too have continued to try to penetrate their nefarious acts. This January alone, 79 criminal elements have been arrested for various crimes.
“The greatest achievement within the last month is the arrest of 10 confessed kidnappers, who were planning to unleash mayhem on the state and recovery of four AK Riffles.
“On January 16, at about 3:45 pm, operatives of Ibiono Ibom Division, relying on credible intelligence stormed Ibiaku Ikot Oku community 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 of them were arrested and one AK 47 riffle recovered. Swift follow up of operation by the Anti-Robbery Unit of the Command led to the further arrest of six suspects and the recovery of three more AK 47 riffles.”
The suspects, he noted, came from neighbouring states to cause havoc in Akwa Ibom, adding that some confessed to planning and monitoring to kidnap an expatriate involved in a construction project along Calabar-Itu Highway.
He disclosed that the suspects will be charged to Court as soon as investigations are concluded, acknowledging the cooperation from Akwa Ibom populace who volunteer useful information to the police and sister security agencies for gainful collaboration to keep Akwa Ibom safe.