The Kogi state police command has expressed worry over the escape of some suspected notorious thieves who were apprehended by the local vigilante group and handed over to the Akpafa Divisional Headquarters in Ogori/Magongo local government area of the state.
Confirming the embarrassment of the police by the incident, the state Police Public Relations Officer(PPRO), Collins Adebayo (ASP) said that the Commissioner of Police, Samuel Adebayo Ogunjemilusi and the command’s management team were not happy with the development.
The PPRO, who said instruction had been given to all concerned police formations to ensure the re-arrest of fleeing suspects, disclosed that appropriate disciplinary measures have been taken against all the policemen on duty on the said day the suspects escaped.
Reports have it that the residents of Ogori and Ayoromi, a border settlement with Edo State had launched protest on the escape of the suspected thieves whom they arrested on Sunday and handed over to the Police.
The Community accused the Divisional Police Officer of complicity in the sudden disappearance of the thieves who have allegedly confessed to the crime and revealed names of their accomplices.
According to a prominent indegine of Ogori, who wants to be anonymous, stealing, house breaking and vandalism had been the order of the day, especially at Ayoromi where most of the people in the diaspora had their houses and properties looted and vandalised.
According to the source, “most of the houses have been vandalized with windows, doors and several building materials carted away by hoodlums”.
The community was said to have set up its own vigilante to watch movements of persons and subsequently apprehended the suspects. [myad]
