Don't Carry Knives, Machetes in Your Cars-FCT Police Commissioner

The Federal Capital Territory, FCT, Police commissioner, Haruna G Garba, has said that it is an offence for vehicles in the FCT and environs to carry knives and machetes.

He made the discloure while speaking with newsmen in his office at the command headquarters Thursday, n the activities of the comman over the last two weeks.

He noted that having knives and cutlasses inside any vehicles makes every occupant of the affected vehicle suspicious as the items may be intended for criminal purposes.

“You are aware that when you are inside a vehicle and a knife is found, a machete is found, it is very very suspicious. It might be that the occupants of the vehicle want to use it for criminal activities because they are not going to the farm. …The fact that you are inside the vehicle these items are found, it is likely they are for criminal activities,” he said.

Surrounded by heads of other security agencies, including the Army, NCDSC and DTRS, CP Garba disclosed that the command, under the auspices of the Joint Task Force, recorded remarkable success in keeping criminals out of the FCT in line with marching directives by the FCT minister, Nyeson Wike.

According to him, the JTF team arrested one hundred and thirty five suspects within the last two weeks at various black spots across the FCT, including Kwali, Dutse Alhaji, Mpape, Karu, AYA, Nyaya, Karimo, Karshi, Kuje, Airport road, Berger Roundabout, Jabi, Orozo and Mararaba.

Seventy-five of the suspects, he said, have been arraigned in court for sundry offences, out of which sixty-five have been ordered to pay fined of between N5000 and N7000. The remaining ten, he added, have been sentenced to community service.

The Command also paraded thirty-nine suspects who were arrested by the JTF team, all of whom are still under interrogation. They are expected to appear in court as soon as interrogations are concluded.

However, out of the number, eight are suspected to be members of the notorious One-Chance syndicate who were arrested with vehicles containing knives, handcuffs and swords.

The recovered vehicle include, one red Golf car with Reg No. ER 09; an ash-coloured Nissan Almeira with Reg No. YAB 679 HG; a navy blue Golf Car without Number Plate; a white Mercedes GLK with Reg No. BWR 238 AY; a brown Mazda with Reg No. KWL 886 AX; a red Golf car with Reg No. BRN 1000 GWZ, a white coloured Carina E with Reg No. KW 196 MD and a white Salon car with Reg No. BSI 9719 Basa Plateau.

The CP also disclosed that the JTF team impounded fifty-four vehicles, out of which a substantial number were found without number plates. Some, he disclosed, were impounded for reasons of having outlawed tinted glasses with a number of them found with a plate number plate either in the front while or back. 

According to him, the offending drivers and or owners of the affected vehicles will soon be arraigned in court.

Other recovered items include two, locally fabricated guns, one locally made Berretta pistol, one revolver double barrel gun with two live cartridges and three full bags of leaves suspected to be Cannabis Sativa and several wraps of the same item and other illicit drugs.