Police refute reported ‘relocation’ of bandits to Kwara

Kwara State Commissioner of Police, Tuesday Assayomo, has said the assertion that bandits and kidnappers have relocated to Kwara and Kogi states from northwestern states of the country is false.

Aare Onakakanfo of Yorubaland, Iba Gani Adams, while speaking during the celebration of the annual Oya festival in Ira, Oyun Local Government Area of Kwara State on Saturday, said that some bandits who escaped from Zamfara, Kaduna and other states in the North-West have relocated into the forest in Kogi and Kwara state.

But in a statement by the Commissioner of Police in Ilorin on Tuesday after a tour of Kwara South Senatorial District, the police boss said that Kwara State remained one of the most peaceful states in the country.

“The Command wishes to assure the good people of the state that there was no relocation of bandits or kidnappers into the state. The state has succeeded in rescuing kidnapped victims and has arrested many kidnappers in the past. Therefore, the command will not relent in doing all that is necessary to sustain the peace and tranquillity in the state including, co-opting the Fulani and other ethnic groups in the vigilante service to enhance the security of our bushes.

Assayomo said  that “adequate security has been emplaced in and around the state. The people would also begin to witness visible police presence on all the highways, entry and exit points of the state while the command’s intelligence arm is also fully on ground.

“The Command has also strengthened the synergy between the command and other security agencies all in a bid to ensure adequate information dissemination in the state.

“The people are therefore advised to go about their lawful businesses and make information available to the police at all times as part of their civic responsibility.