The Ekiti State Police Command has arrested 11 suspected political thugs allegedly hired to disrupt the All Progressives Congress (APC) House of Representatives primary in the state.
The Commissioner of Police in the state, Falade Michael, disclosed this at a news conference in Ado-Ekiti on Friday.
Falade said the command had deployed personnel, including tactical and intelligence units, across the state ahead of the APC House of Representatives primary earlier slated for May 15.
According to him, the deployment is to ensure a peaceful, credible and hitch-free exercise. The police boss said the command received credible intelligence at about 9:00p.m. on Thursday that some suspected hoodlums, armed with dangerous weapons, were sighted at Onikoyi Hotel in Ikun-Ekiti.
He said the operatives of the Rapid Response Squad (RRS) were immediately mobilised to the hotel, leading to the arrest of seven suspects, while others escaped in about three vehicles.
The commissioner of police named the suspects arrested at the hotel as Adekunle Stephen, Adepoju Adebayo, Boluwaji Ishola, Oluwatobi Adeoluwa, Akintunde Emmanuel, Adewale Makanjuola and Ibitola Babatope. Falade said exhibits recovered from the suspects included two pump-action guns, one Beretta pistol, nine rounds of 9mm live ammunition, four live cartridges, substances suspected to be charms, two Apple laptops and a Honda Accord car.
He added that further operations by the police led to the interception of an unregistered Toyota Sienna bus conveying four additional suspects who had initially escaped from the hotel. The additional suspects were identified as Abanikanda Sikiru, Dayo Ibijowo, Ajayi Dele and Adegbite Damola.
The commissioner of police disclosed that one pump-action gun was also recovered from the vehicle. Falade alleged that the suspects confessed during interrogation that they were political thugs hired by a serving member of the House of Representatives to destabilise the APC primary.
He said the suspects would be charged in court upon completion of the investigation, adding that efforts were ongoing to arrest other fleeing suspects and their alleged sponsor. The police commissioner advised residents to remain law-abiding and avoid acts capable of threatening the peace in the state during the electioneering.
He reiterated the commitment of the command in collaborating with other security agencies to maintain peace across the state.
