Officials of the Lagos State Ministry of Environment, on Wednesday, said they arrested a man (identity undisclosed) for allegedly vandalising iron barricades along the Odo Iya Alaro area of the state.
The ministry’s Director of Public Affairs, Kunle Adesina, in a statement made available to According Metro, disclosed that the suspect was arrested on Saturday while vandalising the iron reinforcement that served as a barricade between the Ogudu Garden Valley Scheme and the System One Channel in the area.
He added that upon interrogation, the suspect confessed that he often sold vandalised items to mobile scrap buyers.
Adesina said, “Another vandal was on Saturday apprehended at Ogudu while vandalising the iron reinforcement in the concrete barrier that demarcates the Ogudu Garden Valley scheme from System One Channel (Odo Iya Alaro).
“The suspect confessed that he had engaged in the act once alongside some accomplices who are on the run.
“He stated that he usually sold the vandalised iron at a giveaway amount to mobile scrap buyers.”
The Public Affairs director added that the suspect had been handed over to the police for further investigation and prosecution.
“He has been handed over to officers of Ojota Police Station for further interrogation and prosecution.”
Reacting to the arrest, the state Commissioner for Environment and Water Resources, Tokunbo Wahab, charged residents of the state to take ownership of public infrastructure to deter criminal elements from vandalising public property.
The commissioner stressed that the vandalised barrier was an important infrastructure in the state drainage system while emphasising that vandals would not go unpunished.
“The concrete barrier which demarcates the Ogudu Garden Valley scheme from System One Channel (Odo Iya Alaro) was constructed in 2011 and is a vital infrastructure for the state drainage system.
“It is only when residents take direct ownership that such criminally minded people in society will be kept at bay and not allowed to destroy multi-million naira infrastructure that serves the majority.
“The full force of the law will always be applied to those caught vandalising public infrastructure,” Wahab said.
According Metro reported on May 15 that the Lagos State Government arrested one Abba Mohammed for allegedly vandalising and stealing iron from concrete barriers in the Odo Iya Alaro area.
The government had also vowed that it would prosecute anyone caught vandalising public assets.
Adesina noted that the suspect was arrested in the early hours of the day following an intelligence report from a member of the public.
He added that the 24-year-old Mohammed, alongside two others who fled the scene, broke down the concrete barriers and extracted the iron.
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