The Niger State Police Command has arrested eight suspects over alleged car theft, vandalism, and possession of stolen electricity materials in separate operations across Minna, Bida, Kontagora and the Kaduna-Abuja expressway.
The command said two vehicles were also recovered during the operations.
The arrests were disclosed in a statement issued on Monday by Wasiu Abiodun, the Police Public Relations Officer, who said the suspects were apprehended following intelligence gathering and coordinated surveillance by operatives.
According to the statement, police first arrested 49-year-old Abdulfatai Abdulganiyu of Hotoro, Kano State, and 28-year-old Nura Umar of Low-Cost area, Bida, over alleged involvement in car theft and receiving stolen vehicles.
Abdulganiyu was reportedly tracked to a hotel along Mandela Road, Minna, where he was found with a Honda CR-V bearing registration number ABJ 529 DE, said to have been stolen in Kano.
Police said the suspect confessed during interrogation that the vehicle was handed to him by one Musa Abdulrazak, adding that he brought it to Minna in search of a buyer.
Further investigation led to the arrest of Umar in Bida, where police recovered a Toyota Corolla with registration number MKA 461 MZ. Umar allegedly told investigators he bought the vehicle for ₦1.1 million and paid ₦700,000 upfront.
In a separate operation in Kontagora, police arrested Yazidu Dalhatu over alleged vandalism and theft of transformer oil in Tudun-Wada area, while two other suspects were said to be at large.
The command added that two suspected receivers, Mohammed Lawal and Umar Liman, have also been linked to the stolen transformer components and are under investigation.
Similarly, police operatives intercepted an Ash Volkswagen vehicle along the Kaduna-Abuja expressway conveying vandalised armoured cables suspected to belong to the Abuja Electricity Distribution Company.
Three suspects identified as Ibrahim Aminu, Isah Jafar and Yusuf Aminu were arrested in connection with the case.
Recovered items included hand saws, a hammer, a chisel and burnt armoured cables.
The Commissioner of Police in the state, Adamu Elleman, praised the operatives for their swift action and reaffirmed the command’s commitment to fighting crime across Niger State.
