A combined team of security operatives has arrested eight suspected criminals during a coordinated security operation across parts of Kogi State.

The arrests were disclosed in a statement issued on Thursday by the spokesperson for the Kogi State police command, Saliu Afusat.

The suspects were apprehended in a joint exercise involving the police, the Nigerian Army, local hunters, and vigilante groups, who carried out bush-combing operations in identified flashpoints across the state.

Ms Afusat explained that the operation is part of sustained, intelligence-driven measures aimed at denying criminal elements safe haven in the state and dismantling organised crime networks.

She revealed that security forces combed forested and remote areas considered vulnerable to criminal activities, while aerial surveillance supported ground troops by tracking suspicious movements and identifying hidden camps.

According to her, several suspected bandit hideouts discovered during the exercise were destroyed to prevent reuse.

She revealed that suspected criminals fled their enclaves due to the heavy deployment of security personnel, abandoning several camps.

“The exercise involved thorough combing of identified forested and remote areas suspected to be vulnerable to criminal exploitation. Ground operations were effectively complemented with aerial surveillance, providing enhanced situational awareness, tracking of suspicious movements, and the identification of concealed criminal hideouts. In line with this strategy, discovered bandit camps and hideouts were neutralised to prevent reuse and deny criminal elements any operational comfort.

“Overwhelmed by the coordinated presence and superior deployment of security forces, suspected criminal elements fled their enclaves, abandoning several hideout locations. In the course of the operation, eight (8) suspects were arrested at different points for questioning in connection with suspected criminal activities,” she said.

Ms Afusat said that preliminary investigations indicated that some of those arrested were allegedly acting as informants for kidnapping syndicates operating within the area.

She said the suspects are currently in custody and undergoing further investigation, after which they will face appropriate legal action.

The police spokesperson added that the affected areas have remained calm, with sustained security presence to reassure residents and prevent any breakdown of law and order.

She, however, reiterated the command’s resolve, under the commissioner of police, Naziru Kankarofi, to sustain the joint operations statewide as part of a proactive security strategy.

She also assured the residents of the command’s commitment to protecting lives and property and called on members of the public to remain vigilant and report suspicious activities through the control room emergency lines: 07038329084 and 08152195982.