Police arrest suspected armed robbers girlfriend, recover N2m in Kogi

The Kogi State Police Command has arrested a 23-year-old woman, Charity Williams, during a raid on a suspected criminal hideout at Oguda village, Okene, recovering firearms, ammunition, and over N2m in cash.

According to a statement signed by the Police Public Relations Officer, SP William Aya, on Thursday, the arrest followed a tip-off that led operatives attached to Okene Division to storm Yuwander Lodge, alleged to be a criminal hideout.

Aya said, “Upon searching one of the rooms which was booked by one Christopher Christopher Kadiri, a lady named Charity Williams aged 23 years was arrested and the above exhibits were recovered from the room.”

The exhibits listed include one locally made Beretta pistol, one locally made barrel gun, six rounds of 9mm live ammunition, hard drugs, an axe, four phones, and the sum of N2,047,300.

The police said the prime suspect, identified as Kadiri, escaped before the raid but assured that efforts are ongoing to apprehend him.

In a related development, operatives attached to Ofu Division recovered a locally made barrel gun, a cutlass, and a Tecno phone at Ogbakpedo village along the Itobe–Ayingba road.

The recovery followed intelligence that suspected kidnappers were sighted in the bush, but they fled upon sighting the police.

The statement added, “Efforts are on going to apprehend the suspect at large, while investigation is on going.”

Commending the officers, the Commissioner of Police, Miller G. Dantawaye, described the arrests and recoveries as proof of the command’s determination to combat crime in the state.

Aya quoted him as saying the CP “commended the officers for their dedication to duty and reaffirming his unwavering commitment to the fight against criminality in the state.”

Williams’ arrest highlights a growing trend where girlfriends and female associates of suspected criminals are drawn into illegal activities, either by direct involvement or by shielding fugitives.

Security experts warn that women are increasingly used to rent rooms, carry cash, or disguise operations to avoid police suspicion.

Kogi, which has recorded repeated cases of armed robbery and kidnapping-for-ransom, sits at the centre of North-South routes and has become a key hotspot in Nigeria’s fight against banditry.

Police raids on criminal lodges and forest camps are seen as vital to disrupting networks that often rely on local accomplices for logistics and concealment