Police recover dozens of arms in Lagos

In a mop-up exercise aimed at ridding the metropolis of all criminal activities and illegally acquired arms and ammunition, the Lagos State police command in a single swoop recovered various brands of pistols, rifles and assorted locally made guns from different armed gangs.

Aside from those allegedly recovered from armed robbery suspects, their owners ahead of the April 28, 2018 deadline given by the Inspector General of Police, Ibrahim Idris, voluntarily returned some of the rifles.

The IGP had ordered owners of illegally acquired arms, from March 1, 2018 to return all weapons in their possession to the nearest police station or risk being prosecuted if arrested. Idris later extended the March 28 deadline to April.

The state Commissioner of Police, Imohimi Edgal, who briefed newsmen on the issue yesterday at the command headquarters, Ikeja, said the command recovered a total of 188 various types of guns and 280 ammunition from criminals, stressing that some were voluntarily returned by those who seized the grace provided for by the IGP.

Edgal while giving a break down of the various arms recovered stated that the weapons recovered are: 38 pump action rifles, six AK 47 rifles, 12 double barrel rifles, 70 single barrel locally made cut to size shot guns, 42 locally made double barrel shot guns, 18 locally made revolvers and three Barrett’s pistols.

He said that some of the weapons were recovered from some car snatching syndicate who specialize in stealing exotic vehicles from their owners at gunpoint in other states of the country and thereafter brings them to Lagos where they are sold to unsuspecting members of the public as American used cars.

He said that the robbers whose identities were given as Ridwan Mamud, 23, Oyesanmi Kazeem, 31 and Usmand Umar, 42, were arrested in their hideouts in Ajegunle. He said a total of seven cars were recovered from the gang members.