The Lagos State Commissioner of Police, Olohundare Jimoh, has said the command has intensified deployments to schools, worship centres and other public places to prevent security breaches.

Jimoh gave the assurance on Monday at the command headquarters, Ikeja, while addressing newsmen.

He assured residents that the state remained safe, adding that the new development would be carried out throughout the ember month into the New Year.

He said, “We want the general public to know that Lagos is safe and secure. We have made additional deployments to all schools, places of worship, religious centres and other locations frequently visited by people to ensure all worshippers are safe. This will continue into the New Year and beyond to ensure the safety of all Lagosians and other Nigerians coming into the state. We don’t have any concern to be worried about; we are beefing up security throughout the state.”

Jimoh added that efforts were ongoing to increase the police tactical squad across the local councils in the state.

The development comes amid cases of security breaches in some parts of the country, leading to a series of abductions recorded recently in Kwara, Kebbi and Niger states.

The police boss also disclosed that newly employed drivers and car wash attendants were behind the new wave of stolen vehicles in the state.

The CP, during the briefing, also paraded 10 exotic vehicles, adding that 56 suspects were arrested for various offences across the state.

He said, “I want to emphasise that the onslaughts on the men of the underworld have been yielding results. And that is why behind me there are 10 exotic cars that I’m parading before you today. These vehicles are mostly those that were taken by the drivers who were in charge of such vehicles. Because the complaints we have about stolen vehicles in Lagos were that drivers who were just employed took the vehicles away. And we equally have instances where vehicles that were taken to a car wash were being driven away by the attendants.”

He, however, urged residents to adopt stricter security measures and avoid leaving their car keys carelessly with strangers or newly engaged workers.

“So, we should be more security conscious by ensuring that when we take our vehicle to a car wash, we don’t leave the key of the car with the car wash attendant. We should ensure this security measure so that we don’t get our vehicle stolen,” he added.

Among the recovered vehicles were a white Toyota Hilux, a white Range Rover SUV, a black Land Cruiser, a silver Lexus GX460 SUV, a silver Honda CR-V, a grey Toyota Corolla SM3, and another Toyota Corolla with registration number JJJ 887.

A Boxer Bajaj motorcycle used during a robbery attempt was also recovered.

Jimoh further displayed an assortment of weapons seized from suspects, including four locally made pistols, a cut-to-size single-barrel shotgun, a locally fabricated firearm, cartridges and a machete.

He said the arrests and recoveries were the outcome of intensified operations across the state.

“Each of these vehicles has two or three suspects attached to it. For these successes altogether, we have arrested 56 suspects,” he added.

The CP assured the residents that the command would sustain its crime-fighting drive into the New Year to keep Lagos safe.

Jimoh also assured residents of heightened security across the state, especially around public institutions and areas with high human traffic.

PUNCH Metro reported on November 17 that a Lagos-based developer, Olakanmi Ogundele, raised the alarm after a newly hired driver, Olufemi Jogbodo, allegedly fled with his Gelly Saloon vehicle with number plate AGL586GW, just four days after resuming work.

Ogundele said the suspect, who initially identified himself as Adeleye, was assigned to him by his company’s manager on November 18 after his former driver fell ill.

He said Jogbodo accompanied him on a trip to the Ijebu Ode area of Ogun State on the same day and returned with him to Lagos on November 20. (PUNCH)