Personnel of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Command, have arrested four suspected vandals in Kwali Area Council of the territory.
A statement released on Thursday by the spokesperson for the command, Samuel Idoko, indicated that one AK-47 rifle was discovered in farmland in Abaji, Abaji Area Council of the territory.
Idoko said in the statement that one of the suspects was nabbed while removing an armoured cable at the National Mathematical Centre (NMC), adding that his arrest led to the apprehension of the three others.
He added that the suspect’s confession upon interrogation led to the successful recovery of more stolen cables from a market where they had been taken for sale.
According to him, the suspects, aged between 20 and 35 years will be prosecuted if found guilty in tandem with Section 3 of the NSCDC Act.
“This section empowers the corps to arrest, detain, and prosecute in the name of the Attorney General of the Federation,” he said.
Idoko said that in another development, men of the Anti-Vandal Unit of the command recovered an AK-47 rifle without the magazine on a farm in Abaji while on patrol.
“The farm owner alerted the men on patrol. He said he discovered the rifle on his maize farm in the morning when he went to work.
“The rifle has been taken to the command’s headquarters for safekeeping and further investigation,” he said.
The NSCDC FCT Commandant, Dr Olusola Odumosu commended the command’s anti-vandal team for its gallantry and commitment to protecting the country’s critical infrastructure and ensuring the safety of FCT residents.
Odumosu charged the team not to rest on its oars but to redouble its efforts at dislodging vandals by effecting more arrests.
He praised the farm owner for alerting the operatives on patrol upon discovering the rifle and not keeping it to himself.
He urged citizens to emulate the “patriotic spirit” exhibited by the farm owner by promptly reporting any crime or suspicious movements and activities in their communities to security agencies closest to them.
