Police Arrest JTF Member, Five Others for Cattle Rustling in Benue

A member of the Civilian Joint Task Force (name withheld) and five others have been arrested by Benue State Police Command in Agatu Local Government Area for cow rustling.

Parading the suspects at the command headquarters in Makurdi, weekend, the state Commissioner of Police, Bashir Makama, said the gang was intercepted at Adoka in Otukpo Local Government Area by police personnel on stop-and-search duty in the area.

However, the JTF member said the cows were not rustled, but were being conveyed to their Otukpo office after they were arrested for illegal grazing.

The police boss, Makama, said: "Our patrol team at Adoka intercepted and arrested the gang few days ago at about 3a.m., with 17 rustled cattle in two buses with number plates LG 89 DKP Benue and LG 345 LAM Kogi."

He said the recovered cows were part of over 1,000 recently rustled in the area by unknown armed men.

He added that the case was still being investigated to ascertain the culpability of those fingered in the matter.

However, the JTF member said: "We did not steal the cows; we found them grazing in people's farms and arrested them, after which we decided to take them to our Otukpo office for proper documentation and detention, pending when the owners would come for them."

Asked why the cows were being hauled at wee hours, he said: "That was when we got vehicles to move them to Otukpo."