The Lagos State Commissioner of Police, Olohundare Jimoh, has stated that the command has increased deployments to schools, worship centers, and other public areas to avert security breaches.
Jimoh made the guarantee during a news conference at the command headquarters in Ikeja on Monday.
He reassured citizens that the state was still safe and that the new development will take place throughout the month of November and into January.
He said, “We want the general public to know that Lagos is safe and secure. We have made additional deployments to all schools, places of worship, religious centers, and other locations frequently visited by people to ensure all worshippers are safe.
“This will continue into the New Year and beyond to ensure the safety of all Lagosians and other Nigerians coming into the state. We don’t have any concern to be worried about; we are beefing up security throughout the state.”
Jimoh also stated that attempts were being made to expand the police tactical unit throughout the state’s municipal councils.
The move comes amid reports of security breaches in several parts of the country, including recent abductions in Kwara, Kebbi, and Niger states.
The police chief also revealed that freshly hired drivers and car wash staff were to blame for the state’s recent surge in vehicle thefts.
The police boss, during the briefing, also paraded 10 exotic vehicles, adding that 56 suspects were arrested for various offenses across the state.
He said, “I want to emphasize that the onslaughts on the men of the underworld have been yielding results. And that is why behind me there are 10 exotic cars that I’m parading before you today.
“These vehicles are mostly those that were taken by the drivers who were in charge of such vehicles. Because the complaints we have about stolen vehicles in Lagos were that drivers who were just employed took the vehicles away. And we equally have instances where vehicles that were taken to a car wash were being driven away by the attendants.”
He did, however, urge residents to implement better security measures and avoid leaving their car keys with strangers or freshly hired personnel.
“So, we should be more security conscious by ensuring that when we take our vehicle to a car wash, we don’t leave the key of the car with the car wash attendant. We should ensure this security measure so that we don’t get our vehicle stolen,” he added.
The recovered vehicles were a white Toyota Hilux, a white Range Rover SUV, a black Land Cruiser, a silver Lexus GX460 SUV, a silver Honda CR-V, a grey Toyota Corolla SM3, and another Toyota Corolla with the registration number JJJ 887.
A Boxer Bajaj motorcycle used in a robbery attempt was also seized.
Jimoh also revealed a variety of weapons recovered from suspects, including four locally built handguns, a cut-to-size single-barrel shotgun, a locally fabricated firearm, cartridges, and a machete.
He stated that the arrests and recoveries were the outcome of intensified operations across the state.
“Each of these vehicles has two or three suspects attached to it. For these successes altogether, we have arrested 56 suspects,” he added.
The police chief assured the residents that the command would sustain its crime-fighting drive into the New Year to keep Lagos safe.
Jimoh further assured residents of heightened security across the state, especially around public institutions and areas with high human traffic.
on November 17 that a Lagos-based developer, Olakanmi Ogundele, raised the alarm after a newly hired driver, Olufemi Jogbodo, allegedly fled with his Gelly Saloon vehicle with number plate AGL586GW, just four days after resuming work.
Ogundele stated that the suspect, who initially introduced himself as Adeleye, was assigned to him by his company’s manager on November 18 when his former driver became ill.
He stated that Jogbodo joined him on a journey to the Ijebu Ode area of Ogun State on the same day and returned with him to Lagos on November 20.
According to Ogundele, the suspect also took him to the office the next day before fleeing with the vehicle while he was attending a meeting.
