By Peter Omopo
The Ondo State Police Command and the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria have given conflicting accounts regarding the arrest of suspects linked to security concerns around Akure Airport.
FAAN Managing Director, Olubunmi Kuku, had earlier announced that four suspected bandits were arrested on Sunday through a joint security operation involving multiple agencies. She stated that the suspects were apprehended and handed over to the police following a coordinated effort that included aviation security and other security formations.
However, the Ondo State Commissioner of Police, Adebowale Lawal, refuted the claim, stating that only two suspects were arrested and described them as criminals rather than bandits.
Speaking during a show of force exercise by joint security agencies in the state, Lawal dismissed reports of banditry, insisting that such a classification does not apply to Ondo State. He explained that the suspects arrested were logistics suppliers to criminal elements and kidnappers operating within the state.
The police commissioner further clarified that the arrests did not take place at the airport as claimed by FAAN, but along the Eleyowo and Ilu-Abo axis. He added that another suspect was arrested separately at Ilu-Abo, but was not connected to the initial arrests. All suspects, he said, are currently in police custody.
Lawal emphasized that the operation was carried out by security agencies without FAAN’s involvement and maintained that none of the suspects were apprehended within airport premises.
Meanwhile, security agencies in the state have intensified operations through a coordinated show of force aimed at tackling criminal activities. The exercise involves personnel from the Nigerian Army, the Nigeria Police Force, the Department of State Services, the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps and the Amotekun Corps.
The Commander of the Amotekun Corps in the state, Adetunji Adeleye, said the operation is designed to flush out criminals from both urban areas and forests. He noted that security operatives would conduct bush combing exercises and extend surveillance to remote areas to eliminate threats such as kidnapping and robbery.
Authorities assured residents that the exercise would be continuous as part of efforts to sustain security and rid the state of criminal elements.
