One of the recovered vehicles. Photo: Kano State Police Command.
The Kano State Police Command has arrested four suspects and recovered three stolen vehicles in separate operations conducted between October 8 and 9.
The command disclosed this in a statement issued on Sunday by its Police Public Relations Officer, CSP Abdullahi Kiyawa, saying the recoveries followed intelligence-led operations by the Anti-Kidnapping Squad and Ungogo Police Division.
“One of the recovered vehicles was a 2010 ash-coloured Toyota Corolla allegedly entrusted to a man identified as Sale Usman, also known as Dambu, to sell and remit the proceeds to its owner, Aminu Yahaya, of Darmanawa Quarters,” the statement said.
The police said Usman allegedly diverted the vehicle without the owner’s consent. Operatives later recovered it from a man identified as Sulaiman in Katsina State, who reportedly claimed to have bought it for N7.5m.
In another operation, the police arrested two men, Abubakar Umar, 23, of Nasarawa GRA, and Mustapha Zubairu Abdullahi, 25, of Layin Makabarta, Tarauni, over the alleged theft of a white Toyota Hiace minibus.
“The vehicle, with registration number NSR 261 XB, was reported stolen from Singer Market on October 5 by its owner, Isah Abdullahi, of Bachirawa Quarters, Ungogo Local Government Area.
“Technical support helped the police trace the minibus to a remote area of Mariri Magadawa in Kumbotso Local Government Area, where it was recovered and the two suspects arrested,” Kiyawa added.
The third operation led to the arrest of a 40-year-old man, Abdullahi Adamu, from Potiskum, Yobe State, over the alleged theft of a Mitsubishi Canter truck.
The police said a surveillance team attached to Ungogo Police Division intercepted Adamu on October 8 while he was taking the truck, with registration number BLF 365 XA, to a garage at Kadawa Quarters for repainting.
“During the course of the investigation, the suspect confessed that he stole the said Canter truck from one Dan Baba Garage in Potiskum, Yobe State,” the statement said.
The command said it had contacted the Yobe State Police Command to facilitate further action and identify the rightful owner of the truck.
It added that all four suspects would be charged in court after investigations, while efforts were ongoing to arrest other suspected accomplices.
The Commissioner of Police, Ibrahim Bakori, commended the officers involved for their prompt response and use of technical intelligence in recovering the vehicles.
He urged vehicle owners to be cautious about where they parked their vehicles, entrust their properties only to trusted persons and install additional security devices to deter theft.
The command also called on residents to provide credible information about suspicious activities, particularly attempts to sell vehicles at unusually low prices.