Eric Patrick
The Delta State Police Command has apprehended two persons suspected of being serial phone thieves during a routine stop-and-search operation.
In a statement by the Police Public Relations Officer, SP Bright Edafe, said that officers intercepted a commercial tricycle (keke) and, upon searching the vehicle, discovered seven mobile phones in possession of the rider.
According to him, the passengers were unable to unlock the devices, raising suspicion and prompting further investigation.
Edafe took to his X handle to share the video of the incident, issuing a public advisory to commuters.
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He said, “As you go about your activities this week, for those who board tricycles and commercial vehicles, hold your phones in your hands,” he cautioned. “If any male passenger is coughing, just mind your business and hold your phone firmly. Listen and learn.”
He also defended the police’s stop-and-search strategy as an effective crime-fighting tool. “Stop and search is crime fighting, when our men stop a tricycle or vehicle for a search, don’t frustrate them,” he added.
Interviewing one of the suspects who identified himself as Oliver Osadebe, he said, “I have been doing this before I went to South Africa in 2021.”
Responding to how the phone was recovered the suspect said, “Police stop the keke man, he search me, he didnt see anything, they now search the keke man and saw him with seven phones.”