Recovered Syringe Factory Property Missing At Police Custody In Rivers

Akujobi Amadi

There is confusion over alleged missing properties belonging to the Rivers State Ministry of Health's Syringe Factory located at Rumuosi in Obio/Akpor Local Government Area of the state.

The missing properties were said to have been recovered by the operatives of Nigeran police attached to Zone 16 Headquarters in Bayelsa State from suspected criminals, and handed over to personnel of Anti-Cultism Unit stationed at Emohua section of East-West Road for safe keeping.

It was gathered that operatives of police attached to Zone 16, Bayelsa State, who shared  apartment in the same building with the Anti-Cultism Unit at Emohua section of the East-West Road, acting on credible intelligence, stormed the syringe company on March 22, 2023, and arrested four of the hoodums who were caught with vandalised electric cables, transformer parts, pipes, generating sets.

They had loaded the items in trucks before they were intercepted and arrested.

The suspects were later handed over to the personnel of Anti-Cultism Unit for further investigation.

It was further gathered that the management of Zone 16 Headquarters, upon the arrest, immediately contacted the state Ministry of Health, and notified them of the arrest of the vandals and recovery of some of the properties looted at the syringe factory.

A source said that the state Ministry of Health, upon the notification, approached the Anti-Cultism Unit to know the status of the stolen items recovered and handed over to them by Zone 16 personnel but was shocked that the Anti-Cultism Unit could not give a satisfactory answer on the whereabouts of the exhibits recovered from the suspects.

The development, it was gathered, triggered the anger of the management of the state Ministry of Health to petition the state Commissioner of Police, Emeka Nwonyi, on the 'disapperance' of the exhibits in the custody of the Anti-Cultism Unit in Emohua section of the East-West Road for thorough inquest into the circumstances leading to the disappearance of the alleged recovered items.

The recovered items are said to be key leading evidence for the ministry to properly  prosecute the suspects in the already pending case at the state High Court.

When contacted on phone, the Information Officer attached to the state Ministry of Health, Edna Alete; and the spokesperson of the police command, SP Grace Iringe-Koko; in their separate responses, said that they would reach out to their superiors later.

But at the time of this report, they never reverted to either confirm the incident or deny same.