Police recover over 200 firearms in Lagos

FILE: Police parade kidnapping gang and suspected armed robbers

The Lagos State Police Command on Tuesday said it recovered more than 200 illegally acquired firearms from individuals and suspected hoodlums in the last seven months.

The State Commissioner of Police, Mr Edgal Imohimi, made the disclosure at a news conference in Lagos.

Imohimi said that the firearms were recovered from suspected hoodlums and those that embraced the 21 days grace period given by the Inspector-General of Police to submit their illegally possessed firearms.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the recovered arms and ammunition were taken to the Lagos State Police Command armoury.

The police chief added that the recovery covered a period of seven months, starting from September, 2017 when he assumed duty in the command.

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Giving statistics of recovery, he said that the firearms consisted of 38 pump action rifle, six AK-47 rifles, 12 double barrel rifles, 11 single barrel rifles and 70 single barrel locally made cut to size shot-guns.

Others are 18 locally made revolver pistol, three Beretta pistol, 220 cartridges and 60 7.62mm AK-47 ammunition.

“As you can see on display, the firearms mop up exercise yielded positive result in the command.

“I’m also using this opportunity to call on citizens to take advantage of the grace period and return voluntarily, prohibited firearms.

“Failure to do so will lead to lawful search of buildings and property that we have credible information on which will eventually lead to arrest and prosecution. I hope it won’t come to that,” he said.