Police arraign 65 party goers for violating lockdown

The Lagos State Police Command has arraigned 65 persons for allegedly partying and violating the government’s social distancing and lockdown order.

The order was part of government efforts to check the spread of the coronavirus pandemic.

The Lagos State Police Public Relations Officer,  Bala Elkana, disclosed this in a statement he issued on Monday.

The statement said the Lagos State Task Force on COVID-19 last week arrested the suspects, who had allegedly gathered at 84 Parks and Gardens, Abule-Egba, Lagos State for a birthday bash.

The task force, comprising personnel of the Lagos State Environmental Protection Agency, Lagos State Safety Commission, Rapid Response Squad and the Lagos State Task Force on Environmental Sanitation and Special Offences (Enforcement Unit), arrested the violators following a tip-off from some members of the public.

The suspects were subsequently handed over to the police for profiling, while the venue of the party was sealed off.

Elkana said the suspects would have been arraigned on Friday but for the Workers’ Day public holiday.

The PPRO had said on Friday, “We are still investigating. They will soon be in court. They would have been in court today (Friday) but because it’s a public holiday, the courts did not sit. Definitely, it has to be on Monday.”