The attack by some armed persons at the Sunshine Homes estate in the Nigerian capital, Abuja, during which they killed a retired brigadier general, Uwem Udokwere, and the frequent cases of one-chance robberies in the FCT, calls for a focus of the law enforcement authorities towards nipping crimes in the bud before they occur rather than the approach of chasing after criminal elements after they might have unleashed irredeemable violence on the residents.

The above summation was highlighted by the prominent civil Rights Advocacy group, the Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria (HURIWA), which has also advocated the stiffest punishment of life sentences for suspected one chance robbers even as the Rights group has also advocated the death penalty for one chance robbers who cause the death or even threw out their hapless victims out of speeding vehicles during their operations.

Confirming the killing by armed robbers of the retired military General in Abuja, the FCT command of the police spokesperson Josephine Adeh said the attack occurred at about 3 a.m. on Saturday.

“In response to the tragic and unprecedented attack at Sunshine homes estate by armed robbers, resulting in the untimely demise of one Brigadier General Uwem Harold Udokwere (rtd.) on June 22, 2024, at approximately 03:00 a.m, the Commissioner of Police, FCT, Benneth Igweh has promptly ordered a thorough and discreet investigation into the circumstances surrounding this regrettable event.

“Expressing profound condolences to the bereaved family, CP Benneth Igweh assures the family and the public of swift justice, with every effort in conduit to ensure the perpetrators of the atrocious act are apprehended and brought to justice,” Ms Adeh, a superintendent of police, wrote.

Besides, it has been announced that no fewer than six “one chance” operators have been arrested by operatives from the Federal Capital Territory Command.

The suspects are Abubakar Adams, Ismail Salisu, Yusuf Bello, Nasiru Saidi, Sani Usman and Ibrahim Kasa.

According to a statement on Saturday by the FCT command spokesperson, Josephine Adeh, the suspects rob passengers who board their vehicles, motorcycles and tricycles and push them out afterwards.

The police statement partly read, “The operatives of the police command attached to Utako divisional headquarters, on June 16, 2024, acting on credible intelligence, trailed and arrested six armed robbery suspects: Abubakar Adams, Ismail Salisu, Yusuf Bello, Nasiru Saidi, Sani Usman and Ibrahim Kasa who specialise in attacking unsuspecting residents who board their vehicle or tricycle, robbing them of their valuables and pushing them off the moving vehicle or tricycle.”

But lamenting over what it calls seemingly uncontrollable operations of armed marauders who have continuously invaded different estates and residential homes in the nation’s capital and committing atrocious acts such as the recent assassination by robbers of the retired military General, the Rights group through its National Coordinator Comrade Emmanuel Onwubiko, demanded that the security agencies in Abuja must work in synergy and implement measures to stop these deadly crimes from ever happening through human intelligence. The different agencies of the security architecture must unify their operations and ensure that these despicable crimes of armed robberies and once chance robberies are brought to an end. There is also the need to build up formidable human intelligence from which the security operatives can tap for actionable information and intelligence to nip crimes in the bud. Preventive law enforcement action will minimise the chances of these criminal elements succeeding in unleashing bloodshed in the FCT.”

“The FCT political authority should bring together the different layers of the security services in Abuja so they set up joint patrols just as there is the need for the government to investigate the contractors who were awarded the close circuit television network contract for the whole of the metropolis of Abuja and determine why the contractors didn’t even execute the contract. The FCT administration should compel these failed contractors to return to sites and complete the cctv project or be made to refund the amount already mobilised for the project by the previous administration for the Abuja CCTV project. It is almost impossible to combat crimes and terrorism without CCTV.”

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