Armed Robbery: Soldiers Nab Former Councilor, Two Others In Delta Community

Soldiers on guard on duty along Okoribi road in Uvwie Local Government Area yesterday nabbed a former Councillor in Uvwie Council, Lucky Adibu and two others, Prince Adibu and Victor Achi for allegedly robbing a commercial tricycle operator, Abraham Ofarn and his passengers near Sun-Set Street in the area.
According to Daily Post, the suspects were rounded up by the Soldiers after they allegedly robbed and shattered the windshield of a commercial tricycle with registration number: BKW 364 UC.
The Soldiers also recovered a locally made pistol from the suspects at the scene of the incident.
Also arrested was an aide to the Delta State Governor, Napoleon Adibu.
Napoleon who is a serving member of the Delta State WaterWays Security was arrested for allegedly defending the suspects because two of them are his younger brothers.
Napoleon and the suspects were arrested during the monthly sanitation exercise in Uvwie today.
In a chat with Oasis Magazine, the Commercial Tricycle Operator, Abraham Ofarn claimed that the three suspects robbed and dispossessed him of his mobile phone and unspecified amount of money alongside that of his passengers at about 8a.m. stressing that they broke his windscreen.”
In a swift reaction, the suspects denied the allegations levelled against them insisting that they are members of a local vigilante group at Otokporo II in Uvwie Local Government Area.
Speaking on behalf of the suspects, Victor Achi stated that they participated in the monthly sanitation exercise shortly after they returned from their security work overnight.
Achi claimed that while the sanitation exercise was ongoibg, a certain unidentified man slapped him and he retaliated with a punch.
“So, I had to go back and keep the gun I used for security. Along the line before the Army came. We are vigilante members in Otokporo II. We are not armed robbers. We are members of PCRC,Ebrumede.”
Achi clamed that the locally made pistol recovered from them is an old gun kept in his late father’s house.
While noting that they(suspect) almost lost a vigilante member due to insecurity of the area, Achi said,”We use this gun to tension the criminals away. The area was full of threat. That’s the reason why we carry this gun. We are not criminals. We are just security,” he insisted.
However, the Soldiers refused to hand the suspects to the Ebrumede Divisional Police Officer, CSP Mohammed Shuaibu and his men for investigation and prosecution, saying that their commander has to be present before anything.
In a reaction, Uvwie Local Government Council Chairman, Hon. Tega Ramson Onoyake who was at the scene of the incident,in a chat with OM stated that his administration will not shield any criminal and their nefarious activities in Uvwie land.
Hon. Onoyake said,”The truth is that, I was called upon that they caught some persons with locally made pistol. So, I decided to go and see for myself. Getting to that place, I found out that one of the relatives of the suspects was trying to see if he can allow them to go.
“So, I quickly called upon the DPO in charge of that area, and as God would have it, he was there to see for himself. Before I left there, presently they carried those guys to the Army Barracks and they promised that after their activities, they will hand them over to the police to investigate and proceed from there.”
Hon. Onoyake advised parents to always caution their children against crime and criminality before they graduate into armed robbers, kidnappers, prostitutes and others.
Hon. Onoyake stressed that,”I will not listen to any parent in case any of their children is caught in this kind of act. Parents should sit tight, call their children to order, find out what they’re really doing for a living or where they go at odd hours so that it will not get to this stage. I am very sure in situations like this, I don’t compromise.”
Contacted, the Delta State Acting Police Public Relations Officer,DSP Andrew Aniamaka did not pick his calls neither did he responded to text message put across to him.
Meanwhile, a Mobile Court Presided Over by Helen Okonkwo Ikeh in Uvwie fined about sixty eight persons for flouting the enviromental exercise in the area.
OM learnt that while nobody was convicted, the fine on the offenders is a warning to the people that it is no longer business as usual, as serious measures will be taken against offenders.
The Uvwie Council boss stated that there is a great change compared to previous sanitation exercise in the area especially with the use of a mobile court.
He assured that henceforth, the mobile court will always sit during sanitation adding that,”I also noticed that at the other end of the town at PTI, Airport axis, serious movement were still going on all through the exercise. So, we are looking at having three more mobile courts to work effectively.”
Hon. Onoyake said his greatest challenge is the dumping of refuse on median along the DSC Expressway to Effurun Roundabouts down to Chevron yard in Warri.
Hon. Onoyake appealed to residents to stop dumping refuse on the median and try to help the Goverment see how to make Uvwie Council Area clean for everybody.

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