The Kwara state Commissioner of Police Mr Ambrose Aisabor yesterday paraded fourteen persons including the gang leader suspected to have attacked the house of a chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the state, Alhaji Abubakar Kawu Baraje.
The police commissioner also paraded thirteen hoodlums who allegedly set a mad man ablaze same day at the A Division area of ilorin even as he reiterated his warning that no persons in the state should take laws into their hands.
Saturday Vanguard reliably gathered that the hoodlums allegedly invaded the former national chair of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) family house in Baboko area of Ilorin, the state capital on Wednesday night and destroyed no fewer than ten vehicles parked in the premises.
Also, the gate to the main entrance of his house was said to have been riddled with bullets.
Speaking at a press conference at the state police command headquarters in Ilorin, Ambrose Aisabor said: “On April 23rd this year, we got a distress call from Alhaji Abubakar Kawu Baraje at Baboko quarters that hoodlums were attacking and destroying property in the premises.
“So two patrol teams were dispatched to the scene, but before the policemen got there the hoodlums had fled.
“Three people were shot and are now recovering in the hospital; 14 vehicles among other property were destroyed. The building was also riddled with bullets. In fact, bullet holes are still conspicuous on the premises.“The leader of the gang was identified and picked up. His confessional statement led to the arrest of 14 other members of the criminal gang.”Items recovered from them include one dane gun, one axe, one hammer, one scrapper, two criminal charms, two wraps of weed suspected to be cannabis sativa, one pack of rizzler, two palm slippers, two packets of matches, one playing ludo and seeds, two Nigerian voter’s cards bearing Salihu Dauda and one vigilante grand ID card bearing Dauda Salihu. The police commissioner while parading the 13 persons explained that they were suspected to have set ablaze a person suspected to be insane for alleged kidnapping. According to him,“in another incident, the 13 suspects were picked up when they set an insane person ablaze. This also happened the same day around 4.30pm at ‘D Division’ of the state police in the metropolis.
“The hoodlums lynched a young man at Adeta Roundabout. They also lynched one Saka Shehu suspected to be an insane person. In the course of investigation, the thirteen suspects were picked up and they have made confessional statements.“The third incident was at Ganmo, in the outskirts of the metropolis. It happened on the 24th of this month.
“In the evening, a suspect by name Olayiwola Dauda was arrested. He alongside others now at large, was about to lynch a victim named Ademola Olanrewaju. The victim was immediately rescued by police men who were on patrol.”
He warned Kwarans not to take the law into their hands by illegally taking the lives of others.”We will not tolerate criminality in this state.
It is a peaceful and harmonious state and we should be able to maintain that. People should be able to go about their business without molestation and harassment by street urchins and mischief makers,” he added.On APC’s state congress taking place today, the police boss said security personnel will fortify the venue of the event, warning mischief makers to steer clear of the place.
Said he: “All the congresses held in this state so far have been peaceful apart from few isolated cases that we recorded; there is no curfew in the town. I advise people to go about their normal business. People that have nothing to do in the congress should not be seen in that area as the place will be fortified by police”.
