Joint security operatives led by the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Police Command have raided shanties and ‘Panteka’ markets in Abuja, leading to the recovery of stolen items from public infrastructure, worth N1 billion.
The security operatives also arrested 31 suspects during the operations.
The joint operatives included that of the Nigeria Police Force (NPF), Nigeria Army, Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), Department of State Services (DSS), Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS), Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC), Nigeria Correctional Service (NCoS), FCT Social Development Secretariat (SDS), Abuja Environmental Protection Board (AEPB), National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), and the Abuja Development Control (ADC).
This was revealed by the FCT Commissioner of Police, CP Olatunji Disu, in Abuja on Friday, where he said the estimated value of all the recovered items exceeds N1 billion and warned the public to desist from buying stolen items from scavengers and to always verify the origin of goods before buying.
Some items recovered by the team included 115 units of manhole covers with the inscription ‘Not for Sale’, five motorcycles, huge quantity of cables, cut to size electric-transformer, a huge volume of fiber optic materials, copper wires and rubber insulators.
Other items recovered were 12 large-size solar panels, large quantities of iron rods (22 mm rods), documents related to vehicles with unverifiable ownership, fake, fabricated Mercedes Benz chassis numbers, industrial solar batteries, solar panels, weighing scales and vehicle rims, among others.
CP Disu further warned residents of the nation’s capital to desist from buying stolen items from scavengers or ‘Panteka’ dealers, who vandalise and steal public properties and sell them at give-away prices.
The police commissioner said that in a move to tackle the menace of vandalism, and theft of public infrastructure, the minister of FCT, Bar. Nyesom Wike, convened a security meeting with heads of security agencies where matching order was given to them to address the menace.
He also stated that the strategic gathering culminated in the formation of a joint task force with a directive to close down all scrap yards commonly referred to as ‘Panteka’ markets in the nation’s capital territory.
Notable markets raided by the joint task force included Dei-Dei Panteka, Kabusa Panteka, Dei-Dei Outward Lane Panteka, Zuba Panteka, Mpape Panteka, Jabi Panteka and Nyanya Panteka.
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