…. recover 6 firearms, 30 ammunition, 3 vehicles
Okafor Ofiebor/Port Harcourt
Operatives of the C4i Intelligence Unit of the Rivers State Police Command trailed and arrested one Abdullahi Ibrahim in Kano and recovered two stolen cars: Black Toyota Matrix Reg.No.SPR 283 TA and Toyota Camry Blue Toyota Camry Reg.No.ABC 49 AT stolen from Port Harcourt.
According to the Police, the arrest of Abdullahi Ibrahim in Kano was made possible due to some lids stumbled into the course of investigating a case of kidnapping and armed robbery reported on January 15, 2023, but arrested on Friday, May 12, 2023.
Consequent upon the arrest, the Police Operatives successfully trailed and arrested his co-conspirators, one Tamunor Kubie Okari aged 23, from Okrika in Rivers State; Vincent Kobani aged 20, from Gokana Local Government Area of Rivers State; and one Monima George aged 22, from Buguma in Asari Toru Local Government Area of Rivers State. Three locally made pistols and two live cartridges were recovered from Vincent Kobani upon his arrest at Victoria Street, Port Harcourt.
According to the Spokesperson of the Command, SP Grace Iringe-Koko, the suspects confessed to the crime and described how they forcefully snatched the said Toyota Matrix from one of their victims and thereafter withdrew the sum of N209,000 using his GT Bank ATM card.
In another development, the sequel to an earlier arrest of a suspected kidnapper who kidnapped his victim and her daughter (names withheld) on Saturday, April 15 2023, Operatives of the C4i Intelligence Unit raided an apartment on Plot 34 Lonpry Street, Trans Amadi. In the process, one AK47 rifle with Breach No. 0637, three magazines loaded with thirty rounds of live ammunition each, two long single-barreled guns, and one live cartridge were recovered.
“Similarly, following on an earlier arrest of a member of an armed robbery/car snatching syndicate, on Monday, May 8, 2023, Rivers State Police Operatives proceeded on investigation activities to Abuja, Nasarawa and Gombe States, where they nabbed five suspects, strongly believed to be responsible for theft of cars in the state, and the sale of those stolen vehicles.
Those also arrested include; one Shehu Shagari aged 33 from Kaduna South, Kaduna State who is a major receiver of stolen vehicles from one Hamisu Babangida who is based in Port Harcourt, and a direct receiver from one Tamuno Kobiye aka Okorobo, a suspected armed robber who is a native of Okrika in Okrika local government area and who has been convicted and imprisoned severally on similar offences. One Ibrahim Abubakar aged 37, of Kala Local Government Area in Bornu State, confessed that he bought one Prado Jeep from Shehu Shagari at the rate of N5m and re-sold the same to one Alhaji Abdullahi, a Cameroonian.
Iringe-Koko said the same operation led to the arrest of one Nuhu Ahmed aged 30 and Abdullahi aged 30, both from Yola South LGA of Adamawa State.
Exhibits recovered include a cash sum of N2 Million, which was sent for the purchase of a stolen Toyota Corolla; one Acura Jeep with Reg. No. PBT 10 JP registered on the name Mrs Rebecca Mioko, a resident of Rivers State.
The Command assured that all the suspects will be charged in court at the conclusion of the investigations.
Meanwhile, residents of the state have been called upon to remain supportive, law-abiding, and vigilant and promptly report acts of crime and criminality to the nearest police station or by calling the command’s emergency hotlines on 08032003514 and 08098880134.