TheCable

Adetunji Adeleye, Ondo state commander of Amotekun, the south-west security network, says no fewer than 149 suspected criminals have been arrested at different spots within three LGAs of the state.

Adeleye disclosed this while parading the suspects on Tuesday. He said most of the suspects claimed that they were hunters.

The Amotekun commander stated that the suspects were apprehended with guns, bags of Indian hemp and cutlasses in areas where robbery and kidnapping were rife.

“They surprisingly and carefully concealed and kept their weapons, bags of Indian hemp and cutlasses under their vehicles, and they claimed that they were coming from the various parts of the country,” he said.

“The pertinent questions we are asking is: ‘Why are they hiding their guns? If they are genuine hunters, why not come out openly?’

“One begins to wonder why they would come from the extreme parts of the country to hunt in a village, in a forest they had never been to.

“We have very strong reasons to believe that they are the people that turn at night to kidnappers and armed robbers and commit various crimes, especially on the bad portions of the roads and in the forest reserves of the state.”

He added that while every Nigerian has the right to go anywhere in the country, they do not have the right to go with weapons.

The commander said after conclusion of investigations, the suspects would be taken to relevant government agencies for detailed profiling.

“The government is very clear that if you are a hunter and want to go into the forest, you have to register so that the government, the kings and the hunters will know that you are there,” Adeleye added.