Three suspected armed robbers on Wednesday said they got military uniforms they used in their operations in Warri, Delta State, from men of the Joint Taskforce in the Niger Delta.
The suspects, according to the Police authorities, also claimed responsibility for the recent murder of some military men and policemen in Warri.
More than eight security officers in the state have been killed in the last one month in different locations in the state.
The bandits, who gave their names as Stanley Sapele, 30; Godbless Ebipade, 24; and Alfred Akaebe, 21, insisted that they were “errand boys’’ for men of the JTF in Egwa 11.
They said they came to Warri to mend the army uniforms which were allegedly given to them by the JTF personnel in Egwa 11 before they were apprehended by policemen.
Asked if they were aware that putting on a military uniform when not a military personnel was a crime, they answered in the affirmative. They claimed that the JTF personnel gave them the assurance that nothing would happen to them since they were working for them.
Sapele specifically alleged that they had been working for the JTF members for the past one and half years.
The suspects that were also alleged to have been involved in sea piracy were arrested by the Department of Marine Police who worked on intelligence reports from the Intelligence Department of the Nigerian Navy ship in Delta State.
The Area Commander, Warri, Abutu Yaro, who paraded the suspects, said they threw a bag containing some of their weapons into the river when they were being arrested.
Yaro said, “They were all caught in full Nigeria Army camouflage uniform by the Marine Department of the Nigerian Police Force. The suspects were arrested with two cutlasses, pinches and some other dangerous weapons.
“In the process of arresting them, they threw a bag suspected to be ammunition into the water. As I speak with you, the Marine Department is making frantic efforts to recover the bag.
“They have confirmed that they are responsible for the nefarious activities in Warri and environs, attacking security agencies, killing them and making away with their guns.”
He commended the Nigerian Navy Intelligence Unit of the NNS Delta which, according to him, did the underground work that led to the suspect’s arrest.
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