BENIN CITY-The police in Edo have paraded suspected killers of the former Chairman of Etsako East Local Government Council of the state Hon. Suleiman Afegbua, and three others in Edo State, last week.
The three others were a business woman one Patience Ediri Omo Osagie, pastor Godwin Akpoguenabor and the chief Imam of Egbeta Central Mosque in Ovia North East local government area of Edo State, Alhaji Saka Afolabi.
The pastor was returning from evening church service in Benin while the Chief Imam was on his way to conduct morning prayers at Egbeta when they were reportedly shot dead.
The 12 suspects were among 51 persons paraded for various criminal offences ranging from kidnapping, arned robbery to murder by the police.
The commissioner of police in the state Mr Haliru Gwandu paraded the suspects before newsmen at the state police command headquarters in Benin City, yesterday.
Mr Gwandu who had in a previous press briefing assured that no crime reportedly committed in Edo under his watch would go undetected, stated that the harvest of arrests
is an evidence of police efforts to secure lives and property in Edo
He explained that the crime and arrests were committed and made between March 4 and 20, 2017.
CP Haliru maintained further that the successes were made possible through combined efforts of the command tactical teams, community policing and Village vigilante.
“I want to reassure his Excellency that Edo State Police Command under my watch is doing everything humanly possible to ensure crime and criminality is reduced to its barest ebb through proactive and community policing strategies”. CP Gwandu stated.
Those paraded in connection with the murder of the ex-local council boss were Mustapha Ramat, Boni Sale and Adamu Ado Bayero aka Dantaraba.
The CP said that “investigation reveals that the hoodlums were Fulani Herdsmen”.
He also disclosed the rescue of one Musa Afegbua abducted by the hoodlums after killing the Hon. Suleiman Afegbua.
The suspects while confessing to the crime stated that they were on a random robbery operation when the ex-local council chairman was shot dead.
The suspected killers of Mrs Patience Omo Osagie and Pastor Godwin included Ugo Chukwu Sunday, 24, Emmanuel Eguavoen, 26, and Chinedu Ukwandu said they were on a robbery spree when their bullets hit the two victims.
They said the woman was shot when tried to attract attention by shouting “thief thief” during the robbery operation.
The pastor according to the suspects was fired when he attempted to escape when they stopped him.
Exhibit paraded along with the suspects included two locally made short guns, four live cartridges and the slain business woman’s Nokia Lumia 1 phone.
The suspects are said to be helping the police in their investigation as they would eventually be charged to court.
