The Delta State Police Command has arrested four suspected members of a gun-running syndicate allegedly connected to the recovery of an illegal Beretta pistol in Effurun, Uvwie local government area.

Delta State Commissioner of Police, Yemi Oyeniyi, during a press briefing in Asaba, said the suspects were apprehended during intelligence-led operations carried out in Bayelsa and Imo States.

He said the arrests followed investigations into a Beretta pistol recovered at a transport park in Effurun on May 1, 2026.

“The first suspect, Emmanuel Chukwuemeka, was arrested in Bayelsa State on May 4 alongside his roommate, whose phone was allegedly used to facilitate communication for the firearm transaction. Police investigations revealed that Chukwuemeka allegedly purchased the pistol from one Amadi Princewill for #290,000 before reselling it to a suspect identified as Desmond, who is currently at large, for #380,000.”

Continuing, CP Oyeniyi said, “Desmond reportedly arranged for the weapon to be transported to Effurun and contacted the now-deceased Oghenemine Ogidi to retrieve it and forward it to Sapele.”

Acting on information obtained during interrogation, police operatives tracked and arrested Amadi Princewill in Imo State on May 15.

He stated that further investigations led to the arrest of another suspect, Amadi Felix Chibuike, in Owerri on May 16 after Princewill allegedly confessed to obtaining the firearm from him.

He said, “The fourth suspect arrested in connection with the syndicate is Clifford Boleyelefa”

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has arraigned a self-styled native doctor, Olorunbukunmi Taiwo, and his wife, Awolegan Omolola Omotola, before a Federal High Court sitting in Ado-Ekiti over an alleged N1.09 billion contract scam.

The couple were arraigned by the Ilorin Zonal Directorate of the EFCC before Justice Abubakar Usman on a six-count charge bordering on obtaining money by false pretences and retention of proceeds of crime.

According to the EFCC, the defendants were arrested following a petition by Anazia Colina Kenechukwu, a widow and proprietor of a private school in Delta State, who alleged that Taiwo persuaded her to finance a road construction contract he claimed had been awarded to him by the Delta State Oil Producing Areas Development Commission.

The anti-graft agency said its investigation revealed that the defendants allegedly obtained N1,098,961,500 from the complainant and used part of the proceeds to acquire properties in Ado-Ekiti, including Town Tavern Lounge and a four-bedroom bungalow.

One of the charges read in court stated: “That you, Olorunbukunmi Taiwo and Awolegan Omolola Omotola, sometime between January 2024 and November 2025, in Ilorin within the jurisdiction of this honourable court, with intent to defraud, obtained the sum of N1,098,961,500.00 from one Anazia Colina Kenechukwu.”

The charge further alleged that the money was received through Taiwo’s Access Bank account after the defendants falsely claimed it would be used for a DESOPADEC road project.

According to the charge, the funds were obtained “by falsely representing that same would be used to execute a road construction contract awarded to you by the Delta State Oil Producing Areas Development Commission (DESOPADEC), a pretence you knew to be false.”

The EFCC also disclosed that it had secured an interim forfeiture order on the two properties allegedly acquired with proceeds of the fraud on May 25, 2026.

The defendants pleaded not guilty to all six counts when the charges were read to them.

Following their plea, EFCC counsel Sesan Ola urged the court to fix a date for trial and remand the defendants pending further proceedings.

Justice Usman subsequently adjourned the matter until June 11, 2026, for hearing of the bail application and commencement of trial.

The court also ordered that the defendants be remanded in EFCC custody pending the determination of their bail request.

As part of its coordinated efforts to flush out bandits and other criminal elements in the state, the Zamfara State Police Command said its operatives have neutralised three bandits in Jangebe community, Talata Mafara Local Government Area of Zamfara State.

A statement by the police spokesperson, DSP Yazid Abubakar, said a joint security team comprising operatives of the Violent Crime Response Unit of the State Police Command and Civil Security Volunteers, under the leadership of the Commissioner of Police, CP Ahmad Muhammad Bello, conducted a coordinated anti-banditry operation in Taza, Wuya and Gwaram villages within the Jangebe Forest axis of Anka Local Government Area, leading to the recorded successes.

According to the statement, the recent deployment of Armoured Personnel Carriers (APCs) and CSK operational vehicles provided by the Zamfara State Government has greatly enhanced the command’s operations as it intensifies offensive actions targeting forests and remote locations used as hideouts by bandits.

“Upon arrival at the targeted locations, the team encountered heavily armed bandits who engaged the operatives with sophisticated weapons. A fierce gun battle ensued, during which the security team successfully overpowered the criminals,” it said.

The statement further said no casualties were recorded among the police operatives or supporting security personnel, adding that the operation is particularly noteworthy as it marks the first security incursion and direct engagement against bandits within the Jangebe Forest axis, an area previously regarded as a stronghold of criminal elements.

It added that the Zamfara State Police Command remains resolute in its commitment to sustaining aggressive operations against banditry and other forms of criminality, with a view to restoring lasting peace and security across the state.