The Commissioner of Police in Oyo State, Joe Enwonwu, has warned hoodlums to quietly return the prohibited firearms in their possession.
He made the call in a statement on Friday, asking the miscreants to have a rethink before the full wrath of the law catches up with them.
Enwonwu noted that the weapons were carted away by the thugs who hijacked the protests and used the opportunity to attack some police stations in the state.
He recalled the repeated pleas and advice to the #EndSARS protesters and others, that miscreants would hijack the demonstration and capitalise on the situation to unleash mayhem on innocent citizens.
The police commissioner was worried that all that were envisaged had actually come to pass, adding that undue hardships and needless deaths were meted out to some innocent citizens and police officers in Oyo.
He appealed to genuine protesters to yield to the plea of the President, Muhammadu Buhari, and the Oyo State Governor, Seyi Makinde, to stop the protest but allow for a while for the government to address all their demands.
Enwonwu insisted that the miscreants were using it as an opportunity to carry out coordinated attacks to loot people’s properties.
According to him, stealing police arms is extremely dangerous and can be inimical to the general safety and co-operate existence of the people.
The police commissioner, therefore, pleaded with the residents of Ibadan metropolis and its environment to be on the lookout for those “enemy of progress”.
He asked them to promptly report any group or persons that were not personnel of the police, military, or other security agencies in possession of such arms to the nearest police station for recovery and necessary action.
Enwonwu also advised parents and guardians and all stakeholders to warn their children and wards to desist from acts that can lead to a breakdown of law and order, as well as wanton destruction to lives and property.
He urged the residents of Oyo to go about their lawful businesses without any fear of threats or molestation from any quarter, saying the military and other sister security agencies were complementing the efforts of the police to restore calm to every part of the state.
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