Police nabs fake EFCC operatives for robbery, kidnapping in Nasarawa

Operatives of the Nasarawa State Police Command have nabbed three fake officials of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) in the Nasarawa Local Government Area of the state.

The Police Public Relations Officer in the state, DSP Ramhan Nansel, on Wednesday, in a statement signed and made available to journalists in Lafia, the state capital, noted that the suspects recently launched an attack around the Federal Polytechnic in the Nasarawa LGA, where they robbed the people of their belongings and subsequently abducted a National Diploma student of the institution.

The Police PRO noted that the suspects had been disturbing the peace of residents of the area,

He further explained that the victim was released and the suspects arrested following painstaking efforts by officers of the command.

Nansel said: “On 17/04/2024 at about 1545hrs, a distress call was received that four individuals posing as EFCC personnel, using a Toyota Corolla, Green in colour with registration number Abuja YAB 509 TT robbed some students of the Federal Polytechnic Nasarawa at Samakwe Lodge behind Government College, Nasarawa LGA and abducted one Adudu Kingsley, an ND II Student of the same Polytechnic.

“Reacting to the unsavoury development, police operatives gave the suspects a hot chase and a roadblock was mounted at Laminga junction to stop the suspects from escaping with the victim, but they hit the barrier and fled.

“Furthermore, police operatives at Anguwan Madugu were contacted to mount another roadblock, which the suspects sighted from a distance; abandoned their operational vehicle, and the abducted student, and fled.”

He disclosed that one of the suspects was caught and beaten by a mob before the arrival of the police, while others fled.

The suspect was, however, rescued from the mob by the police and rushed to Primary Health Care, Laminga, where he died during medical treatment.

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“The operational vehicle of the suspects was recovered and taken to the station, where a search was conducted and two identification cards identifying the fleeing members of the syndicate were recovered.

“A follow-up investigation into the case led to the arrest of three other members of the gang, namely: Hyelda Aliyu Ibrahim, Henry Patrick Okwu and Shuaibu Abubakar (the operational driver of the syndicate), all males of Custom Quarters and Up Market area of Masaka where one iPhone 12 Promax, Huawei and one Tecno Spark 5 earlier robbed from some of their victims and fake EFCC ID cards were recovered from them as exhibits.

“The suspects have confessed to being the syndicate responsible for robbing and terrorising student areas in Keffi and Nasarawa LGA. Efforts are ongoing to arrest one identified suspect who is at large. Also, victims of their nefarious activities have come forward and identified the suspects.”

Nansel stated that the Commissioner of Police, CP Umar Nadada, had ordered the transfer of the case to the State Criminal Investigation Department in Lafia.

He asserted that Nadada assured that they would be charged to court for prosecution upon the conclusion of investigations.

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