The police in Borno State have arrested 78 suspects for murder, burglary and stealing of handsets in the Maiduguri Metropolitan Council (MMC) and Jere Local Council of the state.

The Guardian gathered that the suspects were arrested in 14 communities, including Abuja-Sheraton, cattle market, and the Kano motor-park of the Maiduguri metropolis.

Parading the suspects, yesterday, in Maiduguri, the Police Commissioner, Yusufu Lawal, said a 10-member gang of hoodlums attacked and stabbed a police constable, Babagana Mala, attached to the Police Crack Unit on July 23.

He said: “On receipt of distress call, the police patrol team responded and rescued the victim along the Bayan Quarters artillery, by taking Mala to the Specialist Hospital, Maiduguri, where he was later certified dead.”

He explained that Mala was with a knife stabbed on the back by one of the assailants. On how they were arrested, Lawal said undercover police operatives obtained a video clip of the incident from a Good Samaritan, which led to the arrest of Usman Audu, Hauwa Usman, Aisha Musa, Abba Bala, Sunday Garba, and David Paul.

The other four arrested suspects include: Mohammed Abubakar; Jude Eze Amaechi; Abdulsalam Afochibe and Ndubuisi Nnaji. The commissioner added that 78 other suspects were arrested, including a wanted criminal involved in a case of culpable homicide, which was reported on May 13 at Dala Bulumkutu.

He said dangerous weapons, such as knives, cutlasses, machetes and axes were recovered from the suspects as exhibits.

“Some of the arrested suspects were found with illicit substances such as weeds suspected to be Indian hemp, bottles of “Suck and Die”, “Rubber solutions”, tramadol and exol tablets,” he added.

On burglary and theft, the police boss said a syndicate of four young women were arrested for shoplifting of food items and provisions at two shopping complexes in the Dala area of Maiduguri.

According to him, some of them were in flowing gowns (hijabs) pretending to be shopping items, while others shoplifted and concealed the items underneath their hijabs.

“The stolen items were loaded into a waiting tricycle, driven by Adamu Shettima; however, the suspects were intercepted by the Police patrol team.

“During preliminary investigation, all the suspects confessed to the crimes with the recovery of exhibits from them, including the tricycle, five hand-sets snatched and they would be charged to court after completion of investigation,” the commissioner said.

He, therefore, urged parents to counsel their children on the type of friends they associate with, warning that bad friends have negative influences on their children and wards.