The paraded suspects
By PATRICK ABANG, Calabar-
The Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) on Sunday said its operatives have intercepted and taken into custody three men suspected to be arms peddlers at Mfum, the border community along the Nigeria-Cameroon border.
Mfum is a commercial border town in Ikom LGA of Cross River State, where people engaged in international trade transit through vehicles conveying commodities ranging from food items, petroleum products and more across the lines into the Republic of Cameroon.
The NIS Comptroller in charge of Mfum Border Command, Mr. Ndubuisi Eneregbu disclosed this in a statement issued in Calabar on Sunday.
Mr. Eneregbu noted that three suspects including 2 Nigerians and one irregular Cameroonian migrant, who confessed to be a member of the Ambazonia separatist group, were intercepted on a motorcycle with arms and live ammunitions.
He said: “the suspects were found with among other things, a small bag containing incriminating items such as one barrater pistol, one locally made pistol, three live ammunitions, charms and one TECNO BC3 Android phone.
“The three suspects with the incriminating items have been handed over to the Divisional Police Officer Etung Division, Etung Local Government Area for further investigation,” he indicated.
On efforts made since assumption of office to curtail illegal activities within border communities, the Comptroller stated that the command has initiated regular stakeholder meetings with traditional rulers of all border communities under his command to enhance synergy and enshrine trust.
Eneregbu noted, “We have a robust cordial relationship with the border communities. We have had series of stakeholder meetings with the border communities and other security agencies. When I came on board in this command, my team and I paid courtesy visits to all the traditional institutions within the communities under our command.
“We did that because we understand the need for synergy between security agencies and the communities. No security agency can tackle insecurity alone without the support of the community as a whole,” he stated.
He indicated that despite certain logistic challenges, the officers and men were prepared to apprehend anyone found perpetrating illegalities and sabotaging the economy of the country.
“We are prepared, fully prepared to secure our borders from every form of economic saboteurs. Go to Mbok, Yahe and the other border communities, we have our presence there,” he added.
