By CHARLES IWUOHA

Police operatives of the Enugu State police Command attached to Ozalla Division, in collaboration with Neighbourhood Watch personnel, have smashed an armed robbery and mini truck-snatching syndicate.

Daniel Ndukwe, the Police Public Relations Officer in Enugu State, who disclosed this in a statement on Wednesday, said one male suspect, Chinedu Onwuka, aged 35, was arrested.

He said the operatives also rescued a male victim, who had been tied to a tree in the bush, and recovered his Daihatsu Hijet mini truck, locally known as ?Diana?, which the suspect and his fleeing accomplices had stolen at gunpoint.

?The suspect and his gang had hired the driver to transport bags of sand from the Ogbete area of Enugu to Umuatuaboma in Nkanu West LGA.

However, along the Umuatuaboma?Obuofia Road, they diverted the vehicle into a bush at gunpoint, tied the driver to a tree, and fled with the truck. A prompt response by the operatives led to the arrest of the suspect, while others escaped.

?During interrogation, the suspect confessed to the crime and admitted to participating in a similar operation the previous month, for which he was paid ninety thousand naira (N90,000.00) as proceeds from the sale of another snatched mini truck. Investigations are ongoing to apprehend the fleeing suspects.

?The Commissioner of Police, CP Mamman Bitrus Giwa, psc, has reaffirmed the Command?s unwavering resolve to clamp down on unrepentant criminals of this nature.

"He urges mini truck and other types of truck operators to remain vigilant and cautious about whom they accept conveyance jobs from and their destinations to avoid falling victim to such criminal acts,? the statement warned.

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