Operatives of Enugu State Police command have arrested two male suspects over alleged vandalization of transformer and and solar-powered streetlights in the state.
A statement by the command’s spokesperson, DSP Daniel Ndukwe said the suspects were arrested in separate operations by the Command’s Operatives serving in the New Haven Division.
Ndukwe said the “vandalized transformer components and streetlights were recovered from them” and “have been separately arraigned in court, with one of them being convicted and the other remanded.”
Giving a breakdown of how the suspects were arrested, Ndukwe said that “on July 16, 2024, around 8.50 p.m., while on routine patrol along the Powerline area of New Haven, the Operatives sighted one Augustine Bajo James, aged 34, of New Artisan, Enugu, dismantling a power transformer inside the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TNC) substation office.
“The suspect, upon sighting the team, attempted to escape but was promptly arrested. The vandalized parts of the transformer were recovered from the suspect, who confessed to the crime and admitted to committing similar acts of vandalism.
“The suspect was arraigned in the Enugu North Magistrate Court for stealing today, July 18, 2024, and remanded in the Correctional Custodial Centre.
“Similarly, the same Operatives, on July 15, 2024, around 6 a.m., acted on credible information and arrested one Addau Alihu, aged 28, of New Artisan while he was vandalizing solar-powered streetlights along Nza Street, Independence Layout, Enugu. Two pieces of the already dismantled streetlights were recovered from him. He was arraigned in the Enugu Magistrate Court for stealing, on July 17, 2024, convicted, and summarily sentenced to one (1) month community service.
“Meanwhile, the Commissioner of Police, CP Kanayo Uzuegbu, psc (+), has reiterated the unwavering resolve of the Command to sustain the ongoing onslaught against vandals and other criminal elements in Enugu State. However, he calls on the citizenry to continue to assist the police with credible and actionable information required to make the necessary police operations seamless and less cumbersome.”
