WARRI/Nigeria: The Delta State Police Command says separate operations in Agbor and Warri have led to the arrest of two suspects and the recovery of ammunition and large quantities of beverages suspected to be adulterated.
The Command’s Police Public Relations Officer, SP Bright Edafe, disclosed the developments in a statement issued in Asaba on Sunday, saying the operations followed intelligence gathering and stop-and-search activities by operatives of the Special Anti-Kidnapping Unit (SAKU).
In Agbor, operatives attached to SAKU, Ubulu-Uku, arrested a 28-year-old woman, identified as Happiness Clifford, over alleged involvement in gun-running activities in Ika South Local Government Area.
Edafe said the arrest followed credible intelligence which led police operatives to the suspect’s hideout, where 10 live cartridges were recovered from a bucket.
According to the police spokesperson, preliminary investigation allegedly led the suspect to identify her husband, Clifford Okoro, as a major supplier of the ammunition.
The Command said efforts had been intensified to apprehend Okoro, while investigation continues to establish the circumstances surrounding the ammunition and the wider network allegedly connected to the activity.
In a separate operation in Warri, police operatives intercepted a Toyota Sienna carrying quantities of a beverage identified as “Gbefun Hot Drink”, which the Command said was suspected to be adulterated.
The interception occurred on August 17 during a stop-and-search operation along the Warri–Agbarho Expressway. The 44-year-old driver of the vehicle was arrested.
Further investigation reportedly took the operatives to a warehouse at Lower Ginuwa, Warri, where additional quantities of the suspected adulterated drink and other beverages were recovered.
Police also recovered a Suzuki Shuttle bus loaded with similar products from the warehouse, according to the statement.
The Command said persons allegedly operating the warehouse fled after sighting the police, adding that efforts were underway to arrest them and determine the source and distribution network of the suspected adulterated beverages.
The Commissioner of Police, Delta State Command, CP Yemi Oyeniyi, commended the operatives involved in the two operations and directed that the investigations be pursued thoroughly.
Oyeniyi also ordered efforts to be sustained towards apprehending other persons linked to the cases, while urging residents to assist the Command by providing timely and credible information that could aid its crime-fighting operations.
The latest operations add to a series of intelligence-led activities by the Delta Command targeting violent crime and other activities considered threats to public safety. The Command has in recent months continued to emphasise intelligence gathering, community cooperation and proactive policing as key elements of its security strategy.
