The Edo State Police Command has clarified the arrest of four men who were found in possession of firearms, dispelling social media rumors that they were armed herdsmen.
In a statement issued Saturday night, signed by police spokesperson Moses Joel Yamu, the command gave details of the incident, stating that the suspects, Yusuf Abdulkarim, Mujaheed Garba, Shittu Idris, and Jamilu Habibu, were apprehended by Edo Security Network agents and turned over to the police at Ikpoba Hill Division.
Among the items found on the suspects were three Dane guns, six empty cartridges, three half-filled cartridges, four cutlasses, and two daggers.
The individuals were not armed herdsmen, as the internet implied, the police stressed.
Yamu pointed out that investigations showed the accused were hunters who had traveled from Doguwa in Kano State to the Uvbe hamlet in Orhionmwon Local Government Area of Edo State, despite social media rumors claiming they had been caught at a hotel in the state.
“The Edo State Police Command is aware of misinformation on social media that four herdsmen armed with guns were arrested at Americanus Hotel on Osemwenkhae Street after Big Joe Motors, Ramat Park, Orogbeni Quarters and handed over to the police. Preliminary investigation reveals that they are hunters, not herdsmen. They were from Doguwa in Kano State, heading to the Uvbe community in Orhionmwon Local Government Area of Edo State. Meanwhile, an investigation is ongoing,” the statement read.
In response to the misinformation, Monday Agbonika, the state commissioner of police, urged citizens to trust the authorities and wait for investigations to be completed before drawing hasty conclusions.
He also urged residents to refrain from disseminating unsubstantiated information that could cause needless anxiety and tension in the community.
