Sequel to the series of reported cases of armed robbery/kidnapping along Sapele-Warri road and its environs, which have created fear among road users, the Delta State Commissioner of Police, CP Wale Abass on assumption of duty identified this ugly trend as a major security challenge in the state, he then detailed an intelligence unit of the Command, the CP-Decoy squad to embark on a discreet and an intelligence led operation. The Commander Decoy squad, ASP Julius Robinson, led operatives of the squad, relocated to Sapele, on a covert operation while acting on credible intelligence gathered within Sapele and surrounding communities. They arrested one Nyero Sunday ‘m’ 29yrs, of Okwitolo community alongside eight others all in Okpe LGA, Delta State.

All the suspects who were arrested through technical intelligence led investigation have confessed to their involvement in numerous kidnapping/armed robbery operations, they also admitted to terrorizing the Sapele-Warri road. Further investigation led to the arrest of one Umar Bello ‘m’ age 33yrs from Sokoto state but resides in Warri. He usually buys the stolen phones and other valuables robbed from their victims. A Toyota Corolla with Reg. No. WWR 353 LS, a locally made cut-to-size single barrel pistol, eleven (11) rounds of live cartridges, were recovered from the syndicate. Effort is on to arrest other fleeing suspects. 

Similarly, on 15/5/2023, at about 0015hrs, while police operatives of ‘B’ division Warri, led by the DPO SP Bolarinwa Alabi were on visibility/confidence building patrol along Airport road, they sighted a tricycle with three (3) male occupants, and in their usual way, flagged down the tricycle, but the rider on sighting the Police maneuver in a bid to escape, the operatives went after them until they eventually abandoned the tricycle and took to their heels. One of the suspects, named Nworie Emmanuel ‘m’ 20yrs, was arrested and taken to the police station. During interrogation, the suspect stated that he is a member of a three-man gang of armed robbers who uses a tricycle to rob innocent people of their belongings along Airport Road Warri.

He also confessed that they have robbed two persons on that day along Airport road that the phone robbed was with Abdul, one of their fleeing gang members and that their modus operandi is to look out for their victims standing at a lonely road at night, and Abdul (currently at large) will jump down from the tricycle, use the knife to threaten their victim and rob them of their phones and other valuable. The tricycle, the knife they use to scare their victims are in custody alongside the suspect while effort is on to arrest the other fleeing members of the gang.

In another development, the Command crack squad on 16 May 2023 raided a criminal blackspot located around Osuani in Patani LGA and arrested one Priscilla Amor ‘f’ aged 35yrs, and recovered twenty-six wraps of weed suspected to be Indian hemp, nineteen wraps of substance suspected to be Methamphetamine, eight packets of razlers, some mobile phones and other exhibits. Investigation is ongoing to arrest her other gang members.