The Ogun State Police Command said it had arrested at least five individuals for allegedly stealing 18 cows from the Great Fold Acres Farm, located in Ori-Okuta Village, Kajola, along Owode Egba in the Obafemi/Owode Local Government Area of the state.
PUNCH Metro learnt on Wednesday that the arrested suspects, including Ojo Akintunde, Adamu Abubakar, Udu Saliu, Shehu Sakariyau, and Aliu Muhammed, were detained on Saturday, August 3, 2024.
The command’s spokesperson, Odutola Omolola, informed our correspondent that the suspects allegedly broke into the ranch and stole the cattle.
Upon receiving the news of the break-in and missing cattle, our correspondent learnt that the ranch manager, Emmanuel Mosaku, informed the police that he suspected the five workers on the ranch.
While searching for the cattle along the expressway, our correspondent learnt that Akintunde, Adamu, Saliu, Sakariyau, and Muhammed were found loading the cattle onto a truck.
PUNCH Metro also gathered that the search party discovered nine other cattle in a forest, with ropes firmly tied around their necks.
“The suspects were employees at the farm when 18 cows suddenly disappeared from the cattle ranch. The manager suspected the five workers of the incident.
“The suspects were caught while loading the stolen cattle onto a truck. The rest of the cattle were found in a bush,” Odutola stated.
Speaking on a related incident, Odutola disclosed that another suspect had been arrested by police operatives from the Sakura Police Division for a similar crime.
The suspect and another individual allegedly invaded the kitchen of an eatery around 3:00 pm on Monday in Isale Oko, Sagamu Local Government Area.
The suspects, PUNCH Metro learnt, allegedly jumped over the eatery’s fence and made off with various food items, including a bag of rice, vegetables, fish, a crate of soft drinks, tubers of yam, and N267,000.
Odutola noted that a 35-year-old man, Soyemi Adedeji, was arrested in connection with the crime, adding that efforts were ongoing to apprehend the other fleeing suspects.
She, however, noted that all the stolen items had been recovered.
