The police said Thursday they arrested eight suspected highway robbers on the Kaduna-Abuja expressway.

In a statement, Kaduna command’s spokesman Mansir Hassan said operatives from the Tollgate Divisional Headquarters, while on patrol along the Kaduna-Abuja expressway on January 27, arrested seven suspects “while gearing up to operate.”

The statement said, “The patrol team, at about 1100 hours, sighted and intercepted a suspicious vehicle with seven passengers who were met changing their clothing to seemingly operational ones.

“When accosted, they could not offer a plausible explanation. Thus, they were moved to the divisional headquarters. In the course of the investigation, a locally fabricated pistol with three live 20 gauge shotgun cartridges was recovered from them.

“The seven suspects included Sheriff Abubakar, Hassan Adam, Nura Mustafa, Abdullahi Mohammed, Umar Mohammed, Umar Mohammed and Isa Usman. The eighth member of the syndicate, Yusuf Danmakurdi, was arrested by the Divisional Police Headquarters in Tafa.”

The police added, “From our findings, the syndicate often attack motorists along the Kaduna-Abuja highway. Worst hit are people whose vehicles have broken down.

“They attack mostly articulated vehicles carrying goods such as rice, beans, and electronics. They also attack fuel tanks. They usually move with an extra vehicle, a van or bus, into which they pack the aforementioned goods. 

“In the case of a loaded fuel tank, they will restrain the driver and his partner in the bush, move with the tanker, sell the petroleum product and abandon the vehicle.”

The command said the suspects would be arraigned when the investigation is completed.

(NAN)