By Palma Ileye
Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), FCT Command, has arrested a 55-year-old man, Monday Williams, over alleged vandalism and theft of telecommunication fibre-optic cables along the Kugbo-Nyanya axis of Abuja.
Williams, from Demsa Local Government Area of Adamawa State, was arrested by operatives of the Corps’ Critical National Assets and Infrastructure (CNAI) Department during a routine patrol along the Kugbo-Nyanya Expressway, following an intelligence tip-off.
The FCT Commandant, Dr. Olusola Odumosu, disclosed this in a statement issued on Wednesday by the Command’s Public Relations Officer, DSC Monica Ojobi.
According to the statement, the suspect was apprehended inside a telecommunication manhole while allegedly removing fibre-optic cables.
Two rolls of suspected stolen fibre-optic cables, measuring approximately 1,500 metres each, bringing the total recovered length to about 3,000 metres, were recovered from him.
During interrogation, Williams reportedly disclosed that he had been in Abuja since 2004 and had worked in the telecommunication and fibre-optic installation sector.
He allegedly told investigators that he began working independently after leaving his former employer and met one Emeka in 2013, with whom he had since been involved in different deals.
The suspect further claimed that Emeka, who is currently at large, informed him of a purported job around the Nyanya-Kugbo axis.
He reportedly said that Emeka entered a telecommunication manhole and removed about 800 metres of fibre-optic cables, alongside another 700 metres belonging to different telecommunication companies.
The statement added that Williams admitted using his experience in handling different types of telecommunication cables to vandalise installations, while his alleged accomplice fled upon sighting NSCDC operatives.
Reacting to the arrest, Odumosu condemned the increasing activities of infrastructure vandals, warning that the Corps would not tolerate the destruction of critical national assets in the FCT.
He said, “The socio-economic impacts of vandalism are enormous, and I cannot afford to allow it to continue in the FCT.
“You will recall that in recent times, there have been glitches in the telecommunication sector where network disruptions affect businesses and the activities of users. Most of these interferences are caused by saboteurs like him.”
The Commandant warned that anyone caught vandalising public or private infrastructure would face the full weight of the law, adding that the Corps remained committed to protecting critical national assets and infrastructure.
He also urged residents of the FCT to provide credible intelligence to security agencies to help curb vandalism and other criminal activities.
The NSCDC reiterated its determination to safeguard infrastructure essential to public safety, economic activities and national development.
