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Ogun State Police arrested 16 suspects over the past three weeks in a renewed offensive under Operation Kosaye, addressing offenses ranging from the defilement of an 11-year-old girl to illegal fuel dealing, vandalism, burglary, and theft, the command said in a Saturday statement.
Police Public Relations Officer DSP Oluseyi Babaseyi said the arrests followed intelligence-led operations, prompt responses to distress calls, forensic tracking, and coordinated tactical raids carried out across different parts of the state. Items recovered during the operations include two vehicles, a stolen motorcycle, four drums of suspected Automotive Gas Oil, 13 jerry cans of suspected diesel, a pumping machine, a generator, and other exhibits.
Detectives attached to the Agbado Division arrested Saliu Akinwande, 50, on July 21 at around 8:30 p.m. over allegations that he defiled an 11-year-old girl. The victim was taken immediately for medical examination and treatment, while Akinwande was transferred to the State Criminal Investigation Department at Eleweran for further investigation and prosecution.
The same day, operatives of the Special Weapons and Tactics Unit arrested 51-year-old Kabiru Afolabi at Abule-Iroko, Sango, following intelligence on a suspected diesel bunkering syndicate. The operation recovered four drums of suspected AGO, 13 25-litre jerry cans of suspected diesel, a pumping machine, and a generator allegedly used in the illegal operation. Babaseyi said investigations have commenced to identify and apprehend other members of the syndicate and unravel the wider network behind it.
Earlier, on July 12 at about 7 a.m., detectives attached to the Ota Division arrested two suspects, Nnabike Uzolo, 26, and Chino Mgbenya, 28, a commercial motorcyclist, over the alleged vandalism of a telecommunications mast cable at Ten Ten Street, Mine, Ota. Both suspects have since been charged in court, according to Babaseyi, who said the command remains committed to protecting critical national infrastructure and warned that anyone caught vandalizing such facilities would face arrest and prosecution.
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On July 21 at around 7 p.m., detectives attached to the Idanyin Division responded to a burglary report at a commercial establishment, arresting Hammed Olanrewaju and Emmanuel Victor. Part of the stolen property was recovered from the shop of a suspected receiver, with investigations continuing to recover the rest and identify other accomplices.
A separate case traced back to July 3, when a report of a stolen Bajaj Boxer motorcycle came in at about 1:30 p.m. Detectives attached to the Ajuwon Division investigated and arrested 20-year-old Mathew Mark, recovering the motorcycle. Mark remains in custody and will be charged in court once investigations conclude.
A house-breaking incident reported on July 5 led detectives at the Agbado Division to forensically track one of the stolen mobile phones to Sodiq Raji, 32. Raji’s arrest led investigators to three further suspects, Zubby Nzube, 28, Adeyemi Omoyajuowo, 30, and Chimezie Iwuanya, 35. Some stolen property has been recovered, and investigations continue to recover additional items and apprehend accomplices still at large.
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Operatives attached to the Ijebu Imushin Division responded on July 19 at around 4:30 a.m. to a report that armed hoodlums had hijacked a mini truck carrying aluminum doors and window frames along the Benin/Ore Expressway. Babaseyi said the hoodlums abandoned the vehicle and fled into a nearby forest upon sighting police. The truck was recovered and returned to its owner, while efforts to track down the fleeing suspects have been intensified.
Separately, operatives attached to the Atan-Ijebu Division recovered an abandoned bus on July 21 at about 11:45 a.m., acting on information supplied by members of the public.
Operation Kosaye, the umbrella operation under which the arrests were carried out, forms part of the Ogun State Police Command’s ongoing effort to address a spread of offenses across the state’s divisions rather than a single category of crime, spanning cases from infrastructure vandalism to sexual offenses against minors and organized fuel theft. The command’s statement did not disclose the current status of Akinwande’s prosecution, the ages or affiliations of the diesel bunkering syndicate’s other suspected members, or a total estimated value for the fuel, vehicles, and other property recovered across the operations detailed.
