The Edo State Police Command has arrested seven suspected criminals allegedly caught with assorted rifles, alongside another suspect found with arms, ammunition, charms and other dangerous items.
According to a statement issued by the Command’s Public Relations Officer, Moses Yamu, and made available to reporters in Benin City, the arrests were effected by operatives of the Okhuaihe Division working with local vigilantes during a routine stop-and-search along the Benin–Agbor Road.
Yamu explained that the suspects were intercepted after they alighted from a truck between November 2 and December 4, 2025, at about 6:00 p.m. and 6:40 p.m., respectively.
The suspects, aged between 22 and 30, were identified as Usman Ibrahim, Bello Garba, Dahiru Muhammad, Sarki Murtala, Suleman Ibrahim, Umar Yahaya, Abdulahi Hassan, and Isah Musa Maida.
He said preliminary investigations uncovered several photographs of the suspects allegedly posing with rifles.
The group reportedly claimed to be travelling from Adamawa State but failed to give any credible account of their mission.
Items recovered from one of the suspects, Isah Musa Maida, included a dane gun, cartridges, charms, food items, a cutlass, a knife, a solar panel, three flashlights, a mobile phone and a pack of matches.
Yamu added that the suspects have been transferred to the State Criminal Investigation Department (SCID) for further investigation, while Maida will be charged to court upon conclusion of the probe.