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The police in Enugu State, south-east Nigeria, said they have arrested and arraigned two people in court for allegedly stealing and selling 26 water tanks at Amube-Ohum in Orba, a community in Udenu Local Government Area of the state.
The police spokesperson in the state, Daniel Ndukwe, disclosed this in a statement on Monday.
Mr Ndukwe, a deputy superintendent of police, said the two suspects were arrested by operatives serving at Udenu Police Area Command on 23 April with the assistance of residents of the community.
The police spokesperson gave the names of the suspects as Chiegeonu Eze, 22, and Obinna Ezeugwu, 23 — all males.
“The duo, who were found to be specialised in stealing water tanks, commonly called Gee-Pee tank, from building construction sites in the community, were arrested while attempting to steal two tanks from a site on the said date,” Mr Ndukwe said.
“The two tanks and seven others were recovered from them.”
The police spokesperson said confessional statements from the suspects led to recovery of 17 other tanks from the people whom the suspects had sold them to.
He said owners of the recovered tanks were already identifying them and those who bought the stolen tanks from the suspects were on the run.
“Upon conclusion of the investigation, the suspects were arraigned in court and accordingly remanded to Nsukka Custodial Centre for further hearing,” he said.
Mr Ndukwe did not, however, mention the court where the suspects were arraigned.
Prohibited in Nigeria
Stealing is outlawed in section 390 of the Nigeria Criminal Code Act.
Offenders, on conviction, face three years imprisonment or more including payment of fine, depending on the item stolen and its value, according to the law.
An Iyaganku Magistrate Court in Ibadan, in June last year, sentenced a 23-year-old man, Isaac Dumabara, to one month imprisonment for stealing one pot of stew and meat worth N40,000 from a restaurant.
A former deputy chief registrar of the Oyo State High Court, Mutiat Adio, was, in March 2020, sentenced to five years imprisonment after she was found guilty in a one-count charge of stealing.
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