Police Foil Attacks on Plateau Villages, Arrest 18 Suspects
The Assistant Inspector General of Police (AIG) in charge of Zone 4, AIG Ebong Eyibio, has briefed the press on the recent attacks on Plateau State, which claimed over 10 lives and left several properties destroyed.
Eyibio, who spoke at the Plateau State Command Headquarters in Jos on Thursday, said that the police had successfully repelled an attack on the Ntam community and the ASTC Company in Mangu Local Government Area (LGA) on Wednesday night, following a tip-off from intelligence sources.
He said that the police officers from the IGP Special Intervention Squad, the Area Commander Pankshin and the Divisional Police Officer (DPO) of Mangu, had swung into action and thwarted the attempted attack, which was allegedly orchestrated by some criminal elements.
He also said that the police had prevented another attack by some arsonists who tried to set fire on some worship centers in Panyam District of Mangu LGA, with the help of some community elders.
Eyibio further disclosed that he had ordered the deployment of additional Special Intervention personnel to Mangu LGA, to strengthen the security architecture and ensure compliance with the curfew imposed by the government, in order to prevent the escalation of the violence, which he said was almost snowballing into an ethno-religious crisis.
He said that the situation was under control and that nine suspects had been arrested in connection with the latest attacks, while eight others had been arrested earlier for the December 24, 2023 attack on some villages in the same LGA. He said that the suspects were in custody and that various exhibits, such as machetes, petrol kegs and other items, had been recovered from them.
He also said that a delegation from the Plateau State Government, led by the Security Adviser to the Governor, heads of other security agencies, and leaders of both the Christian and Muslim communities, had visited Mangu LGA on Wednesday, to deliberate and chart a way forward to put a stop to the menace. He said that the leaders of both faiths had agreed to call their followers to order and ensure total compliance with the government-imposed curfew, in the interest of peace in their communities.
He commiserated with the government and people of Mangu LGA over the loss of lives and properties as a result of the attacks, and assured them that the police would not tolerate any act of criminality, and would continue to work towards restoring peace, public confidence and normalcy in the state.
He urged the public to remain calm and cooperate with the security agencies, as they were working tirelessly to maintain peace and order in the region.
He also paraded the 18 suspects before the press, and said that they would be charged to court as soon as investigations were concluded.
