The Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) has impounded two trucks conveying large quantities of “stolen railway sleepers” and arrested 12 suspected vandals in the last two weeks.
This is contained in a statement issued in Abuja on Sunday by the NSCDC spokesman, Commandant Olusola Odumosu.
Odumosu said that the Corps had also clamped down on two illegal warehouses with a large number of vandalised railway sleepers.
“The arrests were made during three separate operations by the Commandant General’s Special Intelligence Squad (CG’s SIS) at Kafanchan- Kwoi Road, Jama’a LGA, Kaduna State and Agwan-Kuje village, Kadarko area in Keana LGA of Nasarawa State and National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) orientation camp, Keffi- Abuja expressway,” he said.
He said following an intelligence report, the first five arrests were made when suspected vandals were loading vandalized and stolen railway sleepers at a bush in Nasarawa.
A long open-body Man Diesel trailer already loaded with over 500 pieces of vandalized railway sleepers alleged to be owned by the Nigeria Railway Corporation (NRC) was also concealed under sacks of groundnut dust, according to Odumosu, adding that a forged copy of the Nigeria Railway scrap delivery paper was retrieved from the suspects.
The statement said, in another operation at the NYSC orientation camp, Keffi-Abuja expressway, three suspected vandals were also arrested while conveying large quantities of vandalized railway sleepers concealed with rice chaff inside a J5 Boxer Bus.
Another four suspected vandals were arrested by the CG’s SIS while loading railway sleepers into an already-filled illegal warehouse in Kaduna.
“Acting on a tip-off, the squad immediately swung into action and succeeded in intercepting one white long open-body truck fully loaded with large quantities of vandalized rail track irons, covered with a blue trampoline.
“All the arrested suspects and the exhibits are subject to preliminary investigation by the Corps which will help to make further arrest and subsequent prosecution to reduce the rate of critical infrastructural vandalism in the affected territories,” the statement added.
Citizens are advised to continually provide credible and useful information that will help in the arrest of vandals and criminals across the country.
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