Looting: 269 suspects arrested in Kano, 25 in Nasarawa

The Kano State Police Command has arrested 269 suspects who it said exploited the nationwide strike as a cover for their malicious activities.

Abdullahi Haruna Kiyawa, Police Public Relations Officer in the state, in a statement, said, these individuals engaged in acts of violence, destruction, looting, and causing harm to innocent civilians and resulting in the damage of public and private properties.

He said “In a swift and efficient response to these criminal activities, 269 suspects responsible for destructions, looting, and instigating chaos under the guise of the nationwide protest were arrested with recovery from them many jerricans of 25 litres of groundnut oil, a large quantity of stationeries, foodstuffs, and other valuable properties.

He said the suspects “are currently cooling their feet at the command’s Criminal Investigation Department (CID) and thereafter would be charged in court upon completion of the investigation. 

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Also, 25 suspected protesters were arrested in Keffi in Nasarawa State over looting of shops in the area.

The Commissioner of Police in the state, Umar Shehu-Nadada, in an interview with Daily Trust, said the protest was brought under control by the personnel of the command alongside other security agencies.

He said the protest was hijacked by some miscreants and that children were mobilised to cause unrest by yet-to-be-identified disgruntled elements in the state.

Meanwhile, a dusk-to-dawn curfew has been imposed on Mararaba and other towns in the Karu LGA of the state following violence that erupted in the area.

The chairman of the LGA, James Thomas, disclosed this in a statement yesterday.

“There shall be no movement of vehicles, Keke and okada within the stipulated time. All markets, shopping malls, shops, beer parlours and other business premises shall remain closed from 6pm to 6am,” he stated.