Railway vandalism: NSCDC arrests 13 suspects, impounds railings, sleepers worth N800m

<p>The Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) has arrested 13 suspected railway vandals with large quantities of long rails and sleepers worth N800 million Naira.</p>, <p>The suspects were paraded alongside five trucks conveying the large quantities of vandalised rails and sleepers at the NSCDC Headquarters, Abuja on Tuesday.</p>, <p>The NSCDC National Public Relations Officer, Babawale Afolabi, during the parade, said that the suspects were arrested by the Commandant General’s Special Intelligence Squad (CGs SIS).</p>, <p>Afolabi said that the arrests took place around Manchock area of Kaura Local Government Area, Zonkwa area in Zango Kataf Local Government Area, and Kaffanchan area in Jama’a local government area of Kaduna State.</p>, <p>He said: “The 13 suspects and 5 trucks impounded have been taken into custody for profiling and further investigation and prosecution.</p>, <p>“The 13 suspects are still being interrogated and cross examined after which other accomplices will be arrested and charged to court.”</p>, <p>He disclosed that upon arrest, the CGs SIS were offered a huge sum but they refused to accept the proposed bribe.</p>, <p>“When they were apprehended, the Commander of the squad was offered the sum of N30million which was rejected.”</p>, <p>According to the PRO, the NSCDC Commandant General (CG), Ahmed Audi has decried the continous activities of vandalism across the country by economic saboteurs and their accomplices.</p>, <p>He noted that the CG frowned at the yet to be identified iron and steel companies that always process and melt these vandalised rail track iron and sleepers.</p>, <p>“Efforts are in top gear to smash and unmask these syndicates and make them face the wrath of the law, no matter how highly or lowly placed,” he said.</p>, <p>He said that while interrogating one of the truck drivers, name withheld, he said that he was offered N1.2million upon delivery of the stolen items to Ilorin.</p>, <p>The suspect said that he was however given N200,000 advance payment, at which p