Operatives of Ogun Police Command have arrested nine suspected cultists and some members of other gangs in separate raids on criminal hideouts in different parts of Abeokuta, the state capital.
The separate raids occurred in the Ita-Oshin and Mile 2 areas of Abeokuta on Thursday, February 22, and Friday, February 23, 2024, respectively.
It was gathered that while eight suspected cultists and robbers were nabbed in Ita-Oshin on Friday, only one member of the suspected criminal groups was arrested in the Mile 2 area of the state in a separate raid on Thursday.
Disclosing the identities of the suspects, the police named them as; Odeyewu Samuel, Sola Adebiyu, Adeshina Michael, Segun Taiwo, and Jimoh Ibrahim.
Others are; Agwu Orji, Hamzat Bulama, John Jeremiah, and Quadri Raheem among the suspects.
All the suspects were reportedly arrested in Ita-Oshin except Raheem, who was apprehended in the Mile 2 area of Ogun State.
Ogun Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), Omolola Odutolta, who disclosed this development, noted that the arrest stemmed from “the harvest of suspected criminals following an intelligence raid on criminal hideouts. Some of them are suspected receivers of stolen items, among other social vices.”
It was further learned that the police raid in Ita-Oshin was conducted by police operatives along with the local hunters and members of the local vigilantes.
Odutola noted that the joint security efforts led the officers to the “notorious blackspot and criminal rendezvous behind the Ita-Oshin motor park. The place is known for being the home of cultists and other notorious criminal hideouts.
“The suspects were also notorious for resisting arrest. Mobile phones suspected to have been stolen were recovered from them. When our men asked them for their identification at the time of the arrest, none of them could give a satisfactory answer.
“These suspects are also known for always disturbing the peace in the area. The investigation is ongoing. Those culpable will be charged in court.”
The police spokesperson added that a stop-and-search operation was ongoing to arrest more criminals in the area.