The Edo State Police Command has recorded sweeping security gains in 2025, arresting no fewer than 821 criminal suspects and rescuing 377 kidnapped victims as part of an aggressive, intelligence-led campaign to flush criminals out of the State.
Commissioner of Police, CP Monday Agbonika, disclosed this on Monday in Benin City while briefing journalists on the Command’s year-end security review and measures put in place to guarantee a peaceful Christmas and New Year celebration across Edo State.
According to the police chief, the arrests cut across major crime categories, including 39 armed robbery suspects, 171 kidnapping suspects, 117 murder suspects, 62 linked to rape and sexual offenses, 239 cultism suspects, 36 arrested for unlawful possession of firearms, and 157 others for various offenses.
CP Agbonika said the Command also made significant recoveries during the year, including 11 stolen vehicles, 188 arms of different calibres and 422 rounds of ammunition, underscoring what he described as “a decisive push against organised crime and violent criminality”.
He attributed the successes to proactive and intelligence-driven policing, particularly heightened security operations rolled out for the Yuletide season. These included intensified visibility policing, strategic patrols, targeted stop-and-search operations, intelligence-led deployments and sustained community engagement aimed at deterring crime and boosting public confidence.
A major highlight of the Command’s operations was a large-scale clearance operation in Edo North, personally led by the Commissioner of Police to deny criminal elements access to forests and other ungoverned spaces often used as hideouts.
The operation, which ran from Saturday, 14 December to Saturday, 20 December 2025, was conducted with the approval and support of the Inspector-General of Police, IGP Kayode Egbetokun, who authorised the deployment of police helicopters and drones from the Police Air Wing. The Edo State Government, under Governor Monday Okpebholo, provided critical logistical support.
CP Agbonika explained that the exercise combined ground troops with aerial surveillance and was executed through robust inter-agency collaboration involving the Nigerian Army’s 4 Brigade, the Nigerian Air Force 107 Air Maritime Group, the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, forest guards, local vigilantes and hunters. He assured that the clearance operation would be sustained beyond the festive period.
While wishing residents a peaceful and prosperous Christmas and New Year, the police boss urged the public to remain vigilant, law-abiding and cooperative with security agencies, stressing that security is a collective responsibility.
He also issued a stern warning over the reported disappearance of corpses from some private morgues in the State, describing the acts as criminal, inhuman and a gross violation of the dignity of the deceased and the emotions of bereaved families.
CP Agbonika vowed that anyone found culpable would face the full weight of the law and advised families to patronise government-owned mortuaries where proper oversight is guaranteed.
The Commissioner reaffirmed that the Command’s 24-hour emergency lines remain active, calling on residents to promptly report suspicious activities as the state moves into the festive season.
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