The Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) has clamped down on ‘one-chance’ syndicates operating in unapproved parking zones in Abuja.

Peter Olumuji, the secretary of the command and control centre of the task force established to enforce sanity in the city, explained on Wednesday in Abuja that the raid was to keep the city safe.

The team comprised the police, Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, State Security Service, NIS, Nigerian Correctional Service, the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, and others.

Mr Olumuji revealed that the ‘one-chance’ syndicate use unpainted taxis in unapproved motor parks to lure unsuspected residents, seize their valuables and drop them along the way or even kill their victims.

He said the hideout of suspected miscreants known for attacking unsuspecting residents in the area, mostly at night, was raided. The secretary said about 15 vehicles were also impounded around Bannex Junction, Federal Secretariat, and environs for traffic violations.

According to him, the raid is part of a holistic operation to ensure residents’ safety and free movement within the city without being harassed or attacked by miscreants.

“We have been receiving reports about the operation of one chance in some locations in the city. The enforcement team is all out to ensure that we raid any location that harbours ‘one-chance’ motorists, illegal motor parks or unapproved parking spaces,” Mr Olumuji noted. “We have also realised that besides causing a public nuisance, some of the beggars are being used to gather information for criminals.”

(NAN)