Main PagePolice’s harvest of criminals in Rivers
The suspects and seized weapons on parade
IN
affirmation of the undeniable fact that no part of the entire country
can be said to be entirely free from one form of crime or the other,
Rivers, apart from its history of political turbulence, is unarguably, a
state that has gained notoriety for being a haven of all sorts of
crimes, ranging from communal clashes to armed robberies, kidnapping,
assassinations and cultism. The people and residents of the state are
living in perpetual fear as hardly would any day pass by without the
police having a report of one violent crime or the other.
It was on the heels of the above that the new Commissioner of Police in the state, Mr Chris Ezike, on assumption of office, late June, said he realised the enormity of the challenges besetting the state police command vis-a-vis efficient delivery of satisfactory service to the people of the state. In his quest to rid the state of criminality and criminal elements, he made a passionate appeal to the state government, the people as well as stakeholders to partner and cooperate with the law enforcement agency.
During his maiden press briefing, on July 2, 2015, the Commissioner of Police, therefore, said, among others: “My focus would be to provide qualitative services to the people of the state; fight violent crimes with vigour; partner with other security services and non-state actors; respect the rights of the citizens; abhor corrupt practices; promote professionalism and ensure peace, security and safety for the state and its people.”
In line with his mission and vision, as stated above, Ezike swung into action and, about 24 days after his assumption of office as the top cop in the state, he was able to identify the social vices bedevilling Rivers as he declared at a press briefing, last week, that “the crime-wave was getting higher, driven by increase in kidnapping and armed robbery incidents. These were fueled by cultism. Homicide cases and communal crises across the state were causing concern. Traffic gridlock added to this heap. Therefore, urgent strategic steps had to be taken.”
He, however, disclosed that some major steps were taken by the police in the state under his command which had greatly helped record some major achievements in a little over three weeks. Among the steps taken and which had helped to fundamentally restructure policing in Rivers State, he said, included re-awakening the service zeal and orientation of the average policeman in the state. By this, Ezike said his men and officers must justify their pay by performing reciprocally their expected duties, responsibilities and functions.
Also achieved was the invigoration of visible policing strategy and massive deployment of police patrol vehicles; declaration of “One Month Emergency on Violent Crimes”; introduction of “Operation Keep Moving” which was launched and flagged off two weeks ago by the state governor, Chief Nyesom Wike; resolution of communal crises; intervention in confidence-loss crises between oil firms and host communities and handling and defusing of evolving political tension arising from the court judgment that recently sacked the elected 22 local government areas in the state.
Rivers police, under the leadership of CP Ezike, within the period under review, through its Alternate Dispute Resolution (ADR) mechanism, was able to douse the avoidable bloody communal crises among communities such as Wakama, Kporghor and Kira. In the same vein, the police brought down tension and suppressed violence in Bodo, Gbe, Kpor, Bomu and Lewe communities, all in Gokhana Local Government Area of the state over speculated embezzlement of over N4.5 billion, being royalty fee allegedly paid to the communities by the oil giant, Shell Petroleum Development Corporation (SPDC).
The greatest achievements of the Rivers police, under the watch of Ezike and which can be rightly termed the harvest of criminals in the state, were the arrest of 127 suspected armed robbers, kidnappers and cultists and the recovery of firearms, stolen vehicles and rescue of kidnapped victims.
Giving a breakdown of the feats achieved by the Rivers police from July 1 to date, Ezike, while addressing newsmen at the command’s headquarters in Port Harcourt, said the summary included the following;
Men and officers of Special Anti Robbery Squad (SARS) arrested 45 suspects, while 11 others were either injured or killed in action; firearms recovered from the suspects included seven AK47 rifles, two assault rifles, one SMG, three Pump Action guns, 18 locally made guns, 20 different magazines, three battle axe and 537 rounds of different cartridges.
The police commissioner also disclosed that SARS was able to recover 26 vehicles of different brands, including 15 different Toyota cars; four Hyundai; one Mazda; three Honda; one Volkswagen; one Ford and one Mitsubishi.
Within the period, the Rivers Police Anti-Kidnapping Unit, Ezike revealed, arrested a total of eight kidnapping suspects, while five were injured or killed in action; firearms recovered from the suspects included two AK 47 rifles, four locally made guns, two dane guns, one locally made Double Barrel guns, two Pump Action guns, 16 rounds of different ammunition and five cartridges.
The Anti-Cultism Unit of the state police was also not left out in the harvest of criminals as the Commissioner of Police told newsmen that 74 suspected cultists, belonging to Dey-Gbam; Dey-well; Iceland and Vikings, were arrested. Firearms and ammunition recovered from the arrested suspects, he said, included one AK47 rifle; two locally made gun; one locally made Revolver Pistol; one Pump Action gun; one axe and six live cartridges. According to Ezike, also recovered from the suspects were one Toyota Camry car and 18 motorcycles.
The arrested suspects were paraded during the press briefing and some of them spoke with newsmen on their activities and how they were caught by the police. One of them was a man, Kataan Goewam, who claimed to be a Lance Corporal in the Nigerian Army. Ezike said items recovered from the Lance Corporal and his gang included one AK 47 rifle, six magazines, 150 rounds of 7.62mm ammunition and one Honda Pilot Jeep with Registration Number ABU 203 BC.
According to the Commissioner of Police, Goewam is a member of a five-man armed robbery syndicate. SARS, on July 1, arrested three members of the gang. “This group is adept at snatching vehicles from their owners, especially within Mgbuoba/NTA axis of Port Harcourt. Ironically, the group is led by a soldier (Goewam), who deserted his unit on duty at Maiduguri, Borno State. He has been taken into custody along with two accomplices, Ifeanyi Eze ‘m’ and Golden Mannuel ‘m’.”
Speaking with InsideNigerDelta, the arrested military officer, Goewam, claimed that he joined the Nigerian Army in 2009. According to him, the operation at which he met his waterloo was his first one. “I am a Lance Corporal and I am serving in Maiduguri in Borno State. This is my first operation. Some friends brought us into Rivers State. I was arrested in Bauchi State, after an operation in Rivers. We were arrested with some guns and one Honda Pilot jeep”, he said.
Another suspect, 22-year-old Peace Ogede, from Ahoada East Local Government Area of the state, was arrested for alleged kidnapping. Speaking with InsideNigerDelta, he disclosed that he was relaxing at home one day when a friend came to tell him about a business. “I did not know what type of business he was talking about and I did not ask him”, he added.
However, another kidnap suspect, Destiny Opara, also 22 years old and a cousin of Peace, said his cousin knew about the business that landed them in trouble. “We were told about our victim, a pastor, whom we later killed. I was asked to take an oath, but I refused. I am the one who identified the pastor but I never made a demand. Three of us in the gang were arrested while the fourth person, whose name is Promise, escaped”, he said.
Another kidnap suspect, Ugochukwu Onyechi from Etche, claimed to be a fisherman. Onyechi, who said he was innocent, claimed that he was in his boat, doing his normal business when some men approached him and asked him to ferry their victim across the river. “I am not a kidnapper and this is the first time such a thing would happen to me. I am a fisherman; I was in my boat trying to do my normal business when some people came to me. They pointed a gun at me and told me to ferry their victim, a chief from Choba, across the river. I have to do as they commanded as I had no other choice since they were pointing a gun at me”, he said.
An armed robbery suspect, Paul Linus (aged 23), was caught with a polytene bag allegedly containing a locally made pistol. Claiming to be innocent, he said: “I finished my secondary school education in 2007 and thereafter, I started leaning electrical/electronics. I didn’t finish learning because my boss died. I was resting somewhere at the Slaughter Area 2, some weeks back. Somebody dropped a polytene bag close to where I was resting. Suddenly, some policemen came and the man ran away, but I was still sitting down where I was resting. I was searched but they found nothing on me. However, the polytene bag was searched and inside it was a locally made pistol. But I am innocent as I don’t know anything about the bag or what was inside.”
The state Commissioner of Police, however, said the arrested suspects would soon be taken to court to face various criminal charges, including homicide and robbery. He attributed what he termed ‘modest achievements’ to collaboration and support from the government and people of the state.
Concluding the police boss said, “In a nutshell, we have a collective burden and responsibility. For us to overcome, we must work together, especially in support of police efforts to curb crime and promote peace. The police will continue to provide adequate security coverage to the general public, with emphasis on critical economic assets and other state structures.”
It was on the heels of the above that the new Commissioner of Police in the state, Mr Chris Ezike, on assumption of office, late June, said he realised the enormity of the challenges besetting the state police command vis-a-vis efficient delivery of satisfactory service to the people of the state. In his quest to rid the state of criminality and criminal elements, he made a passionate appeal to the state government, the people as well as stakeholders to partner and cooperate with the law enforcement agency.
During his maiden press briefing, on July 2, 2015, the Commissioner of Police, therefore, said, among others: “My focus would be to provide qualitative services to the people of the state; fight violent crimes with vigour; partner with other security services and non-state actors; respect the rights of the citizens; abhor corrupt practices; promote professionalism and ensure peace, security and safety for the state and its people.”
In line with his mission and vision, as stated above, Ezike swung into action and, about 24 days after his assumption of office as the top cop in the state, he was able to identify the social vices bedevilling Rivers as he declared at a press briefing, last week, that “the crime-wave was getting higher, driven by increase in kidnapping and armed robbery incidents. These were fueled by cultism. Homicide cases and communal crises across the state were causing concern. Traffic gridlock added to this heap. Therefore, urgent strategic steps had to be taken.”
He, however, disclosed that some major steps were taken by the police in the state under his command which had greatly helped record some major achievements in a little over three weeks. Among the steps taken and which had helped to fundamentally restructure policing in Rivers State, he said, included re-awakening the service zeal and orientation of the average policeman in the state. By this, Ezike said his men and officers must justify their pay by performing reciprocally their expected duties, responsibilities and functions.
Also achieved was the invigoration of visible policing strategy and massive deployment of police patrol vehicles; declaration of “One Month Emergency on Violent Crimes”; introduction of “Operation Keep Moving” which was launched and flagged off two weeks ago by the state governor, Chief Nyesom Wike; resolution of communal crises; intervention in confidence-loss crises between oil firms and host communities and handling and defusing of evolving political tension arising from the court judgment that recently sacked the elected 22 local government areas in the state.
Rivers police, under the leadership of CP Ezike, within the period under review, through its Alternate Dispute Resolution (ADR) mechanism, was able to douse the avoidable bloody communal crises among communities such as Wakama, Kporghor and Kira. In the same vein, the police brought down tension and suppressed violence in Bodo, Gbe, Kpor, Bomu and Lewe communities, all in Gokhana Local Government Area of the state over speculated embezzlement of over N4.5 billion, being royalty fee allegedly paid to the communities by the oil giant, Shell Petroleum Development Corporation (SPDC).
The greatest achievements of the Rivers police, under the watch of Ezike and which can be rightly termed the harvest of criminals in the state, were the arrest of 127 suspected armed robbers, kidnappers and cultists and the recovery of firearms, stolen vehicles and rescue of kidnapped victims.
Giving a breakdown of the feats achieved by the Rivers police from July 1 to date, Ezike, while addressing newsmen at the command’s headquarters in Port Harcourt, said the summary included the following;
Men and officers of Special Anti Robbery Squad (SARS) arrested 45 suspects, while 11 others were either injured or killed in action; firearms recovered from the suspects included seven AK47 rifles, two assault rifles, one SMG, three Pump Action guns, 18 locally made guns, 20 different magazines, three battle axe and 537 rounds of different cartridges.
The police commissioner also disclosed that SARS was able to recover 26 vehicles of different brands, including 15 different Toyota cars; four Hyundai; one Mazda; three Honda; one Volkswagen; one Ford and one Mitsubishi.
Within the period, the Rivers Police Anti-Kidnapping Unit, Ezike revealed, arrested a total of eight kidnapping suspects, while five were injured or killed in action; firearms recovered from the suspects included two AK 47 rifles, four locally made guns, two dane guns, one locally made Double Barrel guns, two Pump Action guns, 16 rounds of different ammunition and five cartridges.
The Anti-Cultism Unit of the state police was also not left out in the harvest of criminals as the Commissioner of Police told newsmen that 74 suspected cultists, belonging to Dey-Gbam; Dey-well; Iceland and Vikings, were arrested. Firearms and ammunition recovered from the arrested suspects, he said, included one AK47 rifle; two locally made gun; one locally made Revolver Pistol; one Pump Action gun; one axe and six live cartridges. According to Ezike, also recovered from the suspects were one Toyota Camry car and 18 motorcycles.
The arrested suspects were paraded during the press briefing and some of them spoke with newsmen on their activities and how they were caught by the police. One of them was a man, Kataan Goewam, who claimed to be a Lance Corporal in the Nigerian Army. Ezike said items recovered from the Lance Corporal and his gang included one AK 47 rifle, six magazines, 150 rounds of 7.62mm ammunition and one Honda Pilot Jeep with Registration Number ABU 203 BC.
According to the Commissioner of Police, Goewam is a member of a five-man armed robbery syndicate. SARS, on July 1, arrested three members of the gang. “This group is adept at snatching vehicles from their owners, especially within Mgbuoba/NTA axis of Port Harcourt. Ironically, the group is led by a soldier (Goewam), who deserted his unit on duty at Maiduguri, Borno State. He has been taken into custody along with two accomplices, Ifeanyi Eze ‘m’ and Golden Mannuel ‘m’.”
Speaking with InsideNigerDelta, the arrested military officer, Goewam, claimed that he joined the Nigerian Army in 2009. According to him, the operation at which he met his waterloo was his first one. “I am a Lance Corporal and I am serving in Maiduguri in Borno State. This is my first operation. Some friends brought us into Rivers State. I was arrested in Bauchi State, after an operation in Rivers. We were arrested with some guns and one Honda Pilot jeep”, he said.
Another suspect, 22-year-old Peace Ogede, from Ahoada East Local Government Area of the state, was arrested for alleged kidnapping. Speaking with InsideNigerDelta, he disclosed that he was relaxing at home one day when a friend came to tell him about a business. “I did not know what type of business he was talking about and I did not ask him”, he added.
However, another kidnap suspect, Destiny Opara, also 22 years old and a cousin of Peace, said his cousin knew about the business that landed them in trouble. “We were told about our victim, a pastor, whom we later killed. I was asked to take an oath, but I refused. I am the one who identified the pastor but I never made a demand. Three of us in the gang were arrested while the fourth person, whose name is Promise, escaped”, he said.
Another kidnap suspect, Ugochukwu Onyechi from Etche, claimed to be a fisherman. Onyechi, who said he was innocent, claimed that he was in his boat, doing his normal business when some men approached him and asked him to ferry their victim across the river. “I am not a kidnapper and this is the first time such a thing would happen to me. I am a fisherman; I was in my boat trying to do my normal business when some people came to me. They pointed a gun at me and told me to ferry their victim, a chief from Choba, across the river. I have to do as they commanded as I had no other choice since they were pointing a gun at me”, he said.
An armed robbery suspect, Paul Linus (aged 23), was caught with a polytene bag allegedly containing a locally made pistol. Claiming to be innocent, he said: “I finished my secondary school education in 2007 and thereafter, I started leaning electrical/electronics. I didn’t finish learning because my boss died. I was resting somewhere at the Slaughter Area 2, some weeks back. Somebody dropped a polytene bag close to where I was resting. Suddenly, some policemen came and the man ran away, but I was still sitting down where I was resting. I was searched but they found nothing on me. However, the polytene bag was searched and inside it was a locally made pistol. But I am innocent as I don’t know anything about the bag or what was inside.”
The state Commissioner of Police, however, said the arrested suspects would soon be taken to court to face various criminal charges, including homicide and robbery. He attributed what he termed ‘modest achievements’ to collaboration and support from the government and people of the state.
Concluding the police boss said, “In a nutshell, we have a collective burden and responsibility. For us to overcome, we must work together, especially in support of police efforts to curb crime and promote peace. The police will continue to provide adequate security coverage to the general public, with emphasis on critical economic assets and other state structures.”
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