1,046 arrested for breaching lockdown in Lagos, Kaduna

Precious Igbonwelundu and AbdulGafar Alabelewe, Kaduna

NO fewer than 1,046 persons were arrested on Wednesday for flouting the lockdown order in Lagos and Kaduna states.

Sixty of them were held in Lagos while 986 were arrested in Kaduna.

In Lagos the suspects were said to have gathered in violation of the lockdown order.

Spokesperson for the Lagos State Environment Protection Agency (LASEPA), Bola Ajao, said the team including officials from Safety Commission and Rapid Response Squad (RRS) stormed the venue after being tipped off.

Quoting LASEPA’s General Manager Dolapo Fasawe, Ajao said, “It is no longer business as usual in the state. This pandemic has united us all and encourages citizen participation in terms of information sharing. We responded at exactly 3:10pm after receiving the information and surprisingly met the youths who were shabbily dressed for a birthday party.

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“The facility has been sealed off while the youths were taken away by the police for further investigation and profiling.

The Nation reports that LASEPA also sealed a nightclub on Monday at Victoria Garden City.

In Kaduna, Commissioner of police Umar Musa Muri said the 986 suspects were arrested across the state, adding that 48 of them are mostly religious leaders and bar operators.

Muri said the suspects have been charged to court for prosecution while the remaining suspects will be arraigned in court accordingly.

The command in collaboration with the force headquarters Abuja, on February 5, 2020 launched ‘Operation Taking the Battle to the Bandits’ in which several identified bandits camps in Birnin Gwari and Giwa  were  destroyed.

“The gallant determination of our personnel has yielded some successes with the apprehension of 91 suspects for various crimes which include banditry, armed robbery, kidnapping, culpable homicide, rape, shop breaking, theft and other mundane crimes. He said.

Fifteen AK47 rifles, and other assorted weapons were reportedly recovered from the suspects.