The Ondo State Security Network Agency, known as Amotekun Corps, on Tuesday paraded 28 suspected criminals arrested across the state.
According to the corps, the suspects were apprehended in different parts of the 18 local government areas with support from other security agencies and local vigilantes.
Speaking at the command headquarters in Akure, the state capital, the corps commander, Adetunji Adeleye, explained that the suspects had been linked to crimes such as kidnapping, theft, cattle rustling, vandalism, and robbery.
He said, “Today, I am parading a total of 28 suspects and I want to let you know that the criminal world is evolving.
“Therefore, Ondo State Security Network Agency Amotekun always strives to be ahead of them.
“We have now gone beyond arresting criminals and suspects alone. As we talk now, we are after their godfathers and backbones, and the reason is simple. So we are saying that until we uproot them, we won’t have total peace.”
Adeleye added that the corps was determined to sustain peace and economic growth in the state. He noted, “We need the socio-economic growth of Ondo State to continue to increase. By the intervention of Amotekun Corp, the IGR of Ondo State in 2023 increased by over 500 per cent and we don’t want to relent. Hence, our fight is not against the criminals alone, but against their sponsors.”
On the suspects, he said, “The people we are parading today, there is a section of them that steal, kill, murder riders and dispossess them of their motorcycles. They have already made market receivers, who, within minutes, dismantle and sell to those who will later assemble and sell.
“We’ve gone after them and we’ve arrested the suspect, we’ve arrested the sponsor, we’ve arrested all the culprits. The chain of criminality had to be broken and uprooted, and that is the directive of His Excellency, the Governor of Ondo State, Lucky Aiyedatiwa, to create an enabling environment for investors to bombard Ondo State.”
Adeleye disclosed that four suspected kidnappers were caught in the Elegbeka area, while others were arrested for rape, fraud, cattle rustling, and assault.
He also commended the synergy between Amotekun and other security outfits in combating crime in the state, saying, “We are here today to let you know that the security architecture of Ondo State is firm, and the best criminals can do is to run away from this state.
“The joint patrol team in some parts of the state is still ongoing. And I can tell you this for free that we have dominated the forest. It is no longer a safe place for criminals to thrive.”
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