TheCable

The Bayelsa state police command on Tuesday arrested a suspected gun runner who allegedly sold an AK 47 riffle for N500,000 and a Berrata pistol for N250,000.

Asinim Butswat, spokesman of the command, said suspect was arrested in a sting operation on June 16 at a hotel in Ekenfa 3, Yenagoa.

Butswat said the operation was in furtherance of the directive by the inspector-general of police, Ibrahim Idris, to police commands to mop up arms and ammunition from unauthorised persons.

He said the police recovered one AK47 rifle and two Barreta pistols from the suspects who sourced the arms from the Republic of Cameroon.

He said police detectives lured the suspected notorious gun runner, who hails from Ekeremor local government area of the state, under the guise of purchasing arms from him.

The spokesperson told NAN that the suspected gun runner was arrested with a 34-year-old man from Oboro Town in Delta, who usually introduced him to buyers.

“The suspect confessed that he usually travelled to the Republic of Cameroon to buy arms and ammunition in a community called Okwa, a border town with Bakassi Peninsula,” he said.

“He also admitted that he sells an AK 47 riffle for N550,000 and Berratta pistol for N250,000 in Nigeria.”

The police spokesperson said that efforts were underway to recover some of the guns the suspect earlier sold and arrest the buyers.

He also appealed to members of the public to provide to the police useful information that might lead to the recovery of arms from unauthorised persons.