The Cross River state Police command has arrested some young men and women suspected to have looted and vandalised Tinapa business and leisure resort on October 24, 2020 when the #EndSARS protest was dramatically hijacked.
The Commissioner of Police in the state, Abdulkadir Jimoh, in a chat with Blueprint in Calabar, Monday evening, said flat screen television sets and clothing materials were recovered from the suspects.
He said, “The notorious suspected robber. Kingsley and his gang members terrorising eight miles, and who looted Tinapa have just been arrested in a hotel in eight miles.
“Four flat screen television sets and other clothing materials from Tinapa have been recovered. Investigations ongoing.”
Meanwhile, a statement from the office of the Police Public Relation Officer, and signed by Irene Ugbo, the officer in charge, has denied that 19 inmates escaped from Police custody in Calabar as earlier reported in the media.
The statement read in part: “The attention of the Commissioner of Police, Cross River state Command, CP Abdulkadir Jinmoh, fsi, has been drawn to the unverified exasperated item making the rounds in some social media platforms that 19 suspected armed robbers and kidnappers escaped from Police custody.
“It is on the above premise that the Commissioner of Police wishes to update the general public. On December 13, 2020 at about 5am, seven detainees, who were in the custody of one of the command’s outfits for various offences, escaped from the cell.
“However, three of them died in the process of escaping, while one has been re-arrested. Effort is being intensified to apprehend other fleeing culprits.
“By this announcement, the command urge mischief makers to always confirm facts and figures before sending such for public consumption, as this can cause panic or unnecessary tension in the state.
“In the same vein, the Command will not renege, but have resolved to confront all forms of criminality no matter their schemes before, during and after the yuletide season.”