The Kogi State Command of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) has arrested two butchers for allegedly selling poisonous cow meat to unsuspecting members of the public in the state.
The arrested butchers include, a 26-year-old Omachi Yakubu and Salisu Abalaka, 32, both living in the Felele area of Lokoja, the state capital.
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The two butchers were said to have picked the poisonous meat earlier condemned as unfit for consumption and dumped at the Felele dump site by the state authorities.
The State Commandant of the NSCDC, John Kayode Oyinloye, stated that veterinary doctors who discovered the said meat at Felele abattoir, alerted the Agro Ranger of the corps who swung into action and arrested the culprits.
Oyinloye added that the command would prosecute the suspects as soon as investigation into the allegation is completed.
The state NSCDC boss reiterated the command’s readiness at checking the activities of unscrupulous elements in the agricultural sector to fulfill its constitutional mandate.
He therefore appealed to the state government to support the efforts of the Agro Ranger Unit with mobility to effectively patrol the 21 local government areas of the state to check the activities of such butchers.
In his remarks, the Kogi State Team Leader, Meat Inspection Team, Felele Abattoir, Doctor Ocholi Obaje, and the Area Veterinary Officer, Lokoja, Doctor Musa Gomina Mohammed of the Ministry of Agriculture, said the meat which was earlier condemned as unfit for consumption and dumped at the Felele dump site was later seen in the market which led to the arrest of the suspects.
The suspects reportedly confessed to the crime and pleaded for leniency, saying that they were not aware the meat was not fit for consumption.
