Police arrest three suspected railway vandals, recover tracks worth N200m in Oyo
The Oyo State Police Command has arrested three suspected members of a railway vandalism syndicate and recovered stolen rail tracks valued at about N200 million in a major crackdown on the destruction of critical national infrastructure.
The command, in a statement on Wednesday, said the arrests followed a tip-off from a vigilant resident. Acting on the information, operatives of the Command Monitoring Unit moved to Gambari in the Orile-Igbon area of the state, where they intercepted the suspects on July 14 before the stolen rail tracks could be transported to their destination.
The suspects were identified as Waheed Ayinde, 54, Muhammed Sani, 27, and Hassan Ibrahim, 22. Police also recovered vandalised railway tracks estimated to be worth N200 million and a HOWO truck with registration number CAL 972 XA (Cross River), allegedly used to transport the stolen materials.
Police said preliminary investigations showed that the railway tracks were removed illegally from Niger State and brought into Oyo as part of a coordinated operation, with Lagos believed to be the final destination.
Further investigations revealed that each of the suspects played a specific role in the syndicate. While one allegedly drove the truck conveying the stolen rail tracks, another coordinated the operation, and the third reportedly provided a temporary storage location in Ogbomoso before the items were to be moved to Lagos.
The command said the suspects had made useful statements to investigators and were assisting with efforts to track down other members of the syndicate. It added that investigations were ongoing to recover more exhibits and ensure everyone involved is brought to justice.
Reacting to the operation, the Oyo State Commissioner of Police, Abimbola Olugbenga, praised the resident whose timely information led to the arrests, saying the success underscored the importance of intelligence gathering and public cooperation in the fight against crime.
He urged residents to continue supporting security agencies with credible information, assuring them that the command would remain resolute in protecting critical national infrastructure and preventing Oyo State from becoming a haven for criminals and economic saboteurs.
