Police recover pistol concealed in loaf of bread, arrest suspect in Rivers

Operatives of the Rivers State Police Command have arrested a suspect and recovered an unauthorized firearm ingeniously hidden within a loaf of bread. The discovery was made during a routine stop-and-search operation along Azikiwe Road in Port Harcourt.

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In line with the directives of the Commissioner of Police, Rivers State Command, Olugbenga Adepoju, operatives of the command, during a routine check operation along Azikiwe Road by Red Cross Junction, Port Harcourt, intercepted a vehicle and conducted a thorough search of its occupants. A Browning pistol, ingeniously concealed inside a loaf of bread, was recovered from one Braya Nanas (male), a resident of New Road, Borikiri, Port Harcourt, who was travelling as a passenger in the vehicle.

The suspect, identified as Braya Nanas, was apprehended when a vehicle he was traveling in was searched. Police spokesperson ASP Blessing Agabe stated that the recovered weapon was a Browning pistol, which lacked any visible serial number, raising immediate concerns about its origin and potential illicit use.

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Preliminary investigation revealed that the firearm had no visible serial number, raising concerns about its origin and intended use.

During preliminary investigations, Nanas reportedly admitted to purchasing the firearm in Okrika, a town near Port Harcourt, for N800,000. The absence of a serial number on the weapon is a common indicator of illegal modification or manufacturing, often used by criminal elements to evade tracing.

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The suspect allegedly admitted ownership of the weapon and further stated that he purchased it in Okrika for the sum of Eight Hundred Thousand Naira.

Rivers State Commissioner of Police, Olugbenga Adepoju, emphasized the need for public vigilance, highlighting that the discovery underscores the increasingly deceptive tactics employed by criminals. He urged residents to report any suspicious persons, packages, or activities to the nearest police station and cautioned against unknowingly transporting or storing unknown items, which could inadvertently facilitate criminal enterprises. The command also stressed the importance of community partnership and intelligence sharing for effective policing.

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The discovery of a firearm hidden inside a loaf of bread demonstrated the increasingly deceptive methods employed by criminal elements to evade detection.