The Police in Edo said they arrested and prosecuted no fewer than 135 armed robbery suspects in the last six months, adding that the state was no longer a safe haven for criminals.
The Commissioner of Police in the State, Mr Haliru Gwandu, made the disclosure to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), in Benin on Friday.
He said the command arrested 993 suspected criminals between Sept. 22, 2016 and April 6, including 162 armed robbery suspects.
Gwandu disclosed that within the period under review, the command prosecuted 135 of the arrested robbery suspects.
He said while 52 of the arrested 57 kidnapping suspects were prosecuted, the command also prosecuted 436 suspected cultists out of the 482 arrested suspects.
The commissioner told NAN that operatives of the command made additional arrest of 123 suspects over murder and prosecuted 103 of them, adding that 169 suspects were also arrested for heinous crimes like unlawful possession of fire arms.
He added that the command recovered 56 stolen vehicles, stressing the men and officers of the command had been mobilised to rid the state of criminal elements.
He opined that the stoppage by government of revenue collection by unauthorised persons and idleness were some of the factors responsible for the increase in crime in the state.
Gwandu said the recent state government’s ban on the activities of Community Development Associations and the influx of repatriated Edo indigenes from Libya were also contributory factors to the high crime rate in the state.
He, however, advised youths to gainfully engage themselves in profitable legal ventures and stay out of trouble.
The commissioner appealed to the government to sustain its current drive at creating jobs for youths in the state.
Gwandu said there was need to continually recruit personnel to effectively fight crime in the country, while tactical teams of the SARS and highway patrol vehicles were deployed to ensure safety on the roads.