The Enugu State Police Command has arrested five persons in three separate operations over alleged vandalism and theft of public infrastructure across the state.

The command said the suspects were arrested in connection with the alleged vandalism of a solar street light, road traffic signs and materials belonging to the Enugu State Water Corporation.

The Police Public Relations Officer, Daniel Ndukwe, disclosed this in a statement issued on Monday.

According to Ndukwe, two of the suspects, Wisdom Nuhu and Moses Jonathan, were arrested on September 27, 2026, at about 8:30pm following a tip-off.

He said the suspects were sighted negotiating the sale of a suspected stolen solar street light at a scrap dump in New Artisan Market, Enugu.

Following the information, operatives from the New Haven Police Division moved to the location and arrested the two men, while the solar street light was recovered.

Ndukwe said the suspects confessed during interrogation to vandalising and stealing the solar street light earlier that day at Graceland Estate, Independence Layout, Enugu.

In a separate operation, police operatives from the Abakaliki Road Police Division arrested a 35-year-old man, Chukwudi Nwigbo, along Abakaliki Road, GRA, Enugu, on September 24 at about 3:34am.

The arrest followed a distress alert from the Enugu State Command and Control Centre.

The police spokesperson said Nwigbo and another accomplice, who escaped from the scene, were detected by the security surveillance system while allegedly removing road traffic signs.

Several vandalised road signs bearing different inscriptions were recovered from the suspect.

In another operation conducted on September 15, operatives of the command’s Violent Crime Response Unit, working with members of the Neighbourhood Watch Group, arrested two other suspects identified as Zubairu Hamanpedimso, 31, and Mohamed Adamu, 21.

The duo were allegedly involved in a conspiracy to vandalise and steal materials belonging to the Enugu State Water Corporation.

According to the police, a bag containing iron materials, bolts and nuts allegedly vandalised and stolen from the corporation was recovered from the suspects.

Ndukwe said all five suspects had been arraigned before a court and remanded in correctional custody pending further hearing.

He added that police operatives were continuing efforts to apprehend other suspects allegedly involved in the incidents.

The command reiterated its commitment to protecting public infrastructure and called on residents to provide timely information that could assist security agencies in preventing vandalism and other criminal activities.

Operatives of the Delta State Police Command have rescued a kidnapped woman and arrested five suspects in separate operations targeting kidnapping, cultism and other violent crimes across the state.

The command also recovered a fabricated Beretta pistol, a magazine, two rounds of live ammunition, a battle axe, four cutlasses and a hammer during the operations.

The development was contained in a statement issued by the Police Public Relations Officer, Bright Edafe, and made available to journalists in Warri on Sunday.

According to the statement, operatives of the Otu-Jeremi Division, acting on credible intelligence received from the Ovwian-Aladja Division, mobilised to Usiefrun Community at about 8:30am on October 3, 2026, following information that a 25-year-old woman had allegedly been assaulted and held hostage.

The police said the victim was rescued during the operation, while the main suspect, identified as 29-year-old Brotugbare Francis Onome, was arrested.

A search of the premises allegedly led to the recovery of a fabricated Beretta pistol, one magazine and two rounds of live ammunition.
The command said investigation into the incident was ongoing.

Two arrested over alleged kidnapping plot
In a separate operation, two men were arrested over an alleged plot to kidnap a woman in the Abraka area of Delta State.

The incident was reported at the Abraka Police Division on October 1, 2026, at about 5:30pm.

Following credible intelligence, operatives of the division, working alongside members of the civilian anti-cult group, arrested 37-year-old Endurance Akpade and 43-year-old Edwin Friday Morgan.

The suspects were subsequently taken into police custody and are assisting investigators with the ongoing investigation.

Police arrest two over cult-related murder
The command also disclosed the arrest of two suspected cultists in connection with the killing of a 25-year-old man identified as Godfrey at Jesse Main Market in Ethiope West Local Government Area.

The incident reportedly occurred on March 24, 2026.

According to the police, operatives of the Violent Crime Response Unit acted on intelligence obtained from a viral video allegedly showing suspected cultists celebrating the murder.

The operatives subsequently stormed a suspected criminal hideout in Oghara on October 1 and arrested 23-year-old Ezekiel Sunday Izomor and 23-year-old Emmanuel Ogaganefe.

One battle axe, four cutlasses and one hammer were recovered during the operation.

The police said preliminary investigation indicated that a suspect identified as Collins, who is currently at large, was allegedly seeking to become the leader of the Aro Bagger Confraternity and was said to have needed to kill a rival cult member to achieve the position.

The police further alleged that Collins connived with the two arrested suspects and another suspect identified as Richman, who was said to be a close friend of the deceased.

Both Collins and Richman remain at large, while the police said efforts were ongoing to apprehend them.

The two arrested suspects are currently in police custody and are assisting with the investigation.

CP commends operatives, warns youths against cultism
The Delta State Commissioner of Police, Samuel Erale, commended the operatives involved in the operations for their swift response and effective intelligence sharing.

Eralе reiterated the command’s commitment to intelligence-led policing and sustained operations against kidnapping, cultism and other forms of violent crime in the state.

The police commissioner also urged members of the public to continue providing credible and timely information that could assist security agencies in preventing and investigating criminal activities.

He further advised youths to stay away from cultism, warning that involvement in cult groups could have serious consequences for their future.

The latest operations underscore the Delta State Police Command’s continued focus on intelligence gathering, rapid response and targeted operations against criminal networks across the state.

The Lagos State Ministry of Justice has clarified that a teenager and an adult recently reported to have been detained over a pair of slippers were actually prosecuted for alleged conspiracy to commit robbery and armed robbery.

The clarification was contained in a rejoinder issued on Friday by the Director of Public Prosecutions, Lagos State Ministry of Justice, Adebayo Haroun, concerning charge number ID/22014C/23.

Haroun said the defendants were charged under Sections 299 and 297(2) of the Criminal Law of Lagos State, 2015, following allegations that they were members of a group that robbed a man of his mobile phone and gold chain.

The clarification followed an online report alleging that the defendants had been kept in custody over a pair of slippers allegedly similar to those belonging to the nominal complainant.

According to the DPP, the case was initially assigned to Justice Adenike Coker of the Ikeja High Court after the information was filed on May 31, 2023.

He said the matter was later transferred to Justice Hakeem Oshodi in October 2025 following Justice Coker’s national assignment.

Haroun said the defendants were arraigned and their pleas taken on October 13, 2025, after which the case was adjourned for trial.

He said the prosecution listed the nominal complainant, Daniel Lucky Danjuma, alongside two police investigators, ASP Dolapo and Inspector Omozuafo Martins, as witnesses.

However, repeated efforts to secure Danjuma’s attendance in court were unsuccessful because his telephone was unreachable.

“The prosecuting team was unable to secure his attendance as his phone was unreachable,” Haroun said.

The DPP said the prosecution consequently commenced its case with Inspector Martins, who testified on December 10, 2025, concerning how the complainant allegedly arrested the defendants and took them to the Ikeja Police Station.

According to Haroun, the complainant stated in his police statement that he and a friend boarded a “one-chance” bus on November 27, 2022, and were eventually allowed to alight at National Bus Stop, close to Oshodi.

He allegedly told the police that he was subsequently attacked by men armed with a cutlass and a gun, who allegedly also used charm, before dispossessing him of an iPhone 13 Pro Max and a gold chain.

Haroun said the complainant returned to the area the following day and allegedly found one of the defendants wearing his palm slippers.

The complainant subsequently identified the man as one of his alleged attackers and took the first and second defendants to the police station, the DPP said.

However, after further efforts to secure another prosecution witness failed, the prosecution closed its case.

The defendants, through their counsel, then filed a no-case submission, asking the court to dismiss the charges on the basis that the prosecution had not established sufficient evidence requiring them to enter a defence.

Haroun said both parties filed and adopted their written addresses before Justice Oshodi delivered judgment on September 29, 2026.

According to the DPP, the court upheld the defendants’ no-case submission and discharged them.

He attributed the outcome to the failure of the nominal complainant to appear in court and testify against the defendants.

“The nominal complainant who identified the defendants as part of the gang that attacked him did not come to court to testify in this case as such the evidence to link the defendants with the crime was unavailable,” Haroun said.

The DPP added that the prosecution could not manufacture evidence where a key witness failed to appear in court.

“The failure of the complainant to attend court underscores the importance of the fact that the prosecution cannot manufacture evidence unless the general public performs its part by actively being interested in the outcome of criminal infractions reported at police stations,” he said.

Haroun therefore rejected the portrayal of the matter as a case in which the defendants were detained simply because of a pair of slippers.

“It is therefore not true that the defendants were detained because of a pair of slippers but were alleged to have robbed the nominal complainant with dangerous weapons,” he said.

The DPP added that the prosecutorial authority of the Attorney-General would continue to be exercised “in the interest of the general public, justice and to prevent abuse.”