Dr. Hammed Abodunrin, the Ondo State Commandant of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, on Friday said the outfit handled no fewer than 1,725 cases in 2021.
The Commandant made this known to newsmen in Akure, Ondo State while reviewing the command’s activities in 2021.
Abodunrin added that 284,540 litres of illegal petroleum products were also recovered.
He also said nine trucks were impounded alongside four wooden boats from the coastal area of the State.
According to him, 124 suspects engaged in oil bunkering were arrested by the Intelligence and Investigation Department, and 20 of the cases were still pending in the courts.
He added: “Nineteen suspects were arrested for illegal dealing in petroleum products, 17 suspects for malicious damage of farmlands, and 10 suspects for illegal mining activities.
“Eight suspects were arrested over stolen prepaid meters and two private guard companies was sealed off for illegal operations.
“Others arrested were 12 suspects for robbery, 12 suspects for missing child, 27 suspects for sexual assault/rape, five suspects for child trafficking, and three suspects for job racketeering.”
Abodunrin said the Anti-Human Trafficking and Irregular Migration and Gender Unit handled 185 cases during the year.
According to him, 140 arrests were made, with four of the cases transferred to the National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking In Persons and two transferred to the Ministry of Women Affairs, while 157 were settled.
He said that the command was able to use Alternative Dispute Resolution to resolve 305 cases in the year.
He said: “We conducted some training in 2021 to enhance the capacity of the personnel in discharging their duties effectively, including firefighting and prevention training aimed at upscaling the skills of personnel in fire prevention.
“There was also management staff training to upscale the strategic leadership and professional skills of management staff, anti-fraud training for personnel aimed at equipping the staff in handling cybercrime and other related vices professionally.”
According to the Commandant, a special female squad was tactically trained to respond to school protection in the state and rapid response squad to tackle crimes promptly.
Abodunrin said the command had witnessed transformation in many other key areas, and enjoyed a seamless working relationship with sister agencies in the state.
“As crime and criminalities are becoming more and more sophisticated, the command has devised several security strategies to combat the new trend,” he said.
The Commandant sought for more robust relationship and partnership, and gave full assurance of the command’s readiness to double its effort in discharging her duties professionally.
Abodunrin lauded Governor Oluwarotimi Akeredolu of Ondo State for the support of the government in providing necessary avenue for the command to function effectively.
He advised the general public to continue to give credible intelligence as the command was poised to serve the people better in 2022.
