TWELVE suspected rail track vandals have been apprehended in Nasarawa State by troops from the Nigerian Army’s 4 Special Forces, Doma.
The Command’s acting Deputy Director, Army Public Relations Major Joseph Afolasade, revealed this yesterday at a press conference in Doma.
“On June 15, 2023, troops of the Command, during a routine patrol, intercepted five suspected rail track vandals at an abandoned railway station between Angwan Yara and Agyaragu communities in Keana Local Council.
“The suspects were arrested with large quantity of rail track loaded in two trucks fully loaded.
“In the course of investigation, the troops arrested additional seven suspects on June 18, who made confessional statements,” he said.
According to Afolasade, the suspects have admitted to playing various roles in rail track theft and have named influential people in Nasarawa and Plateau states as members of the network.
The spokesman, however, did not name the important individuals involved in the crime, emphasizing that the suspects claimed they were scammed by their sponsors.
“They offered our personnel N5 million to allow them go with the vandalised rail track equipment, but our men rejected the money and arrested them,” he added.
Afolasade stated further that the Special Forces Commander, Maj. Gen. Owyinka Soyele, had approved the suspects’ transfer to the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) for further investigation.
The Deputy Commandant of Nasarawa NSCDC, Afere Joseph while receiving the suspects, thanked the Army for their collaboration in combating insecurity. He also warned communities to avoid criminality.
Joseph, on the other hand, pledged that the suspects would be charged in court as soon as the investigation was completed.
