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Tag: Operation Sweep

  • Operation sweep raids motor parks, blackspots to ensure safe yuletide in Abuja

    Operation sweep raids motor parks, blackspots to ensure safe yuletide in Abuja

    Operation Sweep, a special security task force of the Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA), on Monday carried out coordinated raids on motor parks and other strategic locations across the FCT to flush out criminal elements ahead of the festive season.

    The Director of the Security Services Department, FCTA, Mr Adamu Gwary, said the operation was aimed at ensuring a safe and secure yuletide for residents and visitors to the nation’s capital.

    Gwary, who spoke through the Secretary of the Command and Control Centre, Dr Peter Olumuji, said the exercise would be sustained throughout the festive period.

    He explained that the FCT Minister, Nyesom Wike, had issued a clear directive to all security agencies under Operation Sweep to rid the territory of all forms of criminality.

    According to him, the operation has already recorded significant successes and will continue with constant monitoring of motor parks and other vulnerable locations.

    Gwary said illegal motor parks being used by “one chance” criminal syndicates to abduct unsuspecting commuters were being dismantled. He added that shanties and other structures harbouring criminal elements were also being destroyed.

    “We want to tell all miscreants and criminal elements in the FCT that the territory will be too hot for them to operate. We no longer have a haven for criminals in the FCT, and they should take note of that,” he said.

    Read Also: FCT Operation Sweep arrests 210 ‘robbers’, beggars

    The director disclosed that several arrests had been made, numerous shanties demolished, and criminals posing as taxi drivers dislodged during the operation.

    He stressed that the primary objective is to safeguard lives and property across the FCT during the festive season and beyond.

    He further noted that, in collaboration with security agencies, the FCTA had deployed personnel to the identified blackspots across the city to provide tight security throughout the celebrations.

    Gwary also called on operators of motor parks and event centres to ensure that only individuals with verifiable identities, especially motorists, are allowed to operate within their facilities.

    Commending the task force, the Chairman of the National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW), Jabi Motor Park, Abuja, Adamu Abubakar, said the operation was helping to rid the city of “one chance” operators.

    He added that the initiative was contributing to the sanitisation of transport operations within the FCT.

  • FCT Operation Sweep arrests 210 ‘robbers’, beggars

    FCT Operation Sweep arrests 210 ‘robbers’, beggars

    To curb crime and restore order in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), the joint security taskforce code named Operation Sweep has arrested 210 One-Chance operators, street beggars and scavengers.

    The suspects comprising 80 men, 58 women, and 72 children were arrested within three days of the launch of the operation.

    This was disclosed by the FCT Director of Security, Damy Gwary, after a meeting with security commanders where the multi-agency operation was reviewed.

    The meeting, which took place at the FCT Police Command headquarters in Abuja, was convened to evaluate field reports, identify operational issues, and devise proactive strategies to consolidate on early gains. 

    In attendance were high-ranking officials from the Nigerian Army, Navy, Police, Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), and the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC), among others.

    A statement by the spokesperson for the FCT Police Command, SP Josephine Adeh, said the review session underscored the importance of improved intelligence sharing, enhanced patrol coordination and joint enforcement efforts across the territory.

    “Operation Sweep was initiated to sanitize the city and ensure law-abiding residents can go about their legitimate activities without fear. What we are seeing already is a demonstration of inter-agency synergy working effectively,” she said.

    Read Also: FCTA Task Force impounds 280 vehicles in crackdown on crime, illegal transport

    The initiative is in line with the directive of the FCT Minister, Nyesom Wike, who has repeatedly emphasized the need to rid Abuja of criminal elements and those constituting environmental nuisance.

    Speaking on the arrests, the Acting Director of Social Welfare Services, Mrs. Gloria Onwuka, confirmed that the beggars were being profiled for evacuation to their states of origin, while the suspected criminals are currently in police custody undergoing investigation.

    “Some of the arrested individuals belong to organized criminal networks, including the ‘one chance’ syndicates. Others are scavengers operating without any form of regulation,” Mrs. Onwuka earlier told journalists.