Thirty-four suspected cultists escaped death as they fell off from the ceiling where they hid during a Police raid on their criminal hideout in the Cable Point area of Asaba, the Delta State.
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The suspects were promptly arrested by operatives from the ‘C’ Division of the state police command.
Last week, some hoodlums in the area attacked a police patrol vehicle with machetes, leading to the death of a sergeant, even as the suspects made away with the rifles of the operatives.
However, acting on a tip-off, operatives of the ‘C’ Division swooped on the hideout, a hotel in the area, where the prime suspect of the attack on the police patrol vehicle was said to have escaped.
Although the Divisional Police Officer (DPO), CSP Anietie Eyoh, who led the team, declined comments, a source in the police station told Daily Sun that the raid was carried out on Monday night when the suspects had gathered, apparently for an operation.
The source said operatives from the division overwhelmed the suspected cultists, who hid in the ceiling of the hotel but were smoked out and taken into custody.
“When we arrived, we occupied the entire place and they were looking for an escape route. So, they climbed into the ceiling but because of their weight, the ceiling collapsed and they dropped one after the other.
“That was how they were arrested, and they are suspected cultists. However, the kingpin who led that attack on the police vehicle last week was in a room with a lady. He escaped through the window,” the source said.
The source added that the lady who aided the escape of the prime suspect was among those in custody, adding that she was being investigated with a view to tracking down the fleeing suspect.
