ASABA/Nigeria: A suspected robbery network operating around the Warri and Kwale axes has come under fresh police scrutiny following the arrest of two suspects and the recovery of firearms and a large quantity of property believed to have been stolen, the Delta State Police Command has said.
The development was contained in a statement issued on Tuesday, September 22, by the Police Public Relations Officer, Delta State Command, SP Bright Edafe, who said separate operations in Orerokpe, Ekpan and Agbor also led to the arrest of three other suspects.
The police said the first breakthrough occurred on September 19 when operatives of Orerokpe Division, working with members of the Civilian Anti-Cult group in Osubi, intercepted two Toyota Sienna vehicles carrying musical equipment along the Warri-Sapele Road.
According to the command, the occupants abandoned the vehicles and fled after sighting the police, but one of them, identified as Lawrence Onowenakpo, 45, was arrested.
A search of the vehicles allegedly uncovered three locally made single-barrelled long guns and one live cartridge.
The command said preliminary questioning of the suspect led investigators to Ajeh Zephaniah, also known as Fanta, whom the suspect allegedly identified as the leader of the group.
Police said further investigation took officers to a scrap yard in Warri which they suspected was being used as the gang’s operational base.
The operation reportedly yielded three motorcycles, 22 air-conditioning units, 13 washing machines, 29 motorcycle and tricycle engines, musical equipment, television sets, a generator, a laptop and other items suspected to have been stolen.
The command said preliminary investigation had linked the group to recent armed robbery incidents around the Kwale and Warri areas, while efforts were continuing to locate Zephaniah and other members of the group who reportedly escaped.
In a separate operation the same day, police operatives attached to Ekpan Division responded to a distress call over a man allegedly threatening people around the Scrap Yard axis of the Effurun-Sapele Road.
The police said Meshach Onovoisa, 23, was arrested during the operation and a locally made single-barrelled gun was recovered from him.
The command said the suspect allegedly admitted during preliminary interrogation to being involved in armed robbery. Investigation into the case is continuing.
Meanwhile, three other suspects were arrested in Agbor over an alleged attempt to dispose of a mini bus suspected to have been stolen.
The suspects — Agbaja Promise, 20; Emmanuel Ovieh, 25; and Odiri Dama, 25 — were arrested by operatives of Agbor Division on September 19 following what the police described as credible intelligence.
According to the command, the three men, all from Benin City, Edo State, were allegedly attempting to sell a Hijet mini bus with registration number BEN-485-XH for ₦300,000 without producing documents for the vehicle.
Police said the vehicle was recovered and its owner subsequently identified and contacted.
The investigations into the three incidents are ongoing.
The Commissioner of Police, Delta State Command, CP Samuel E. Erale,commended the officers involved in the operations as well as members of the public whose information contributed to the arrests and recoveries.
Erale, according to the statement, reaffirmed the command’s determination to disrupt criminal networks operating in the state and urged residents to continue providing the police with credible and timely information.
