Another set of 26 officials of the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) has been arrested for alleged extortion of motorists in different parts of the country.

The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) disclosed this in a statement by its spokesperson, Rasheedat Okoduwa, in Abuja on Wednesday.

Okoduwa said the culprits were nabbed in a joint operation codenamed “Operation Tranquility”, involving operatives of the ICPC, FRSC and the Department of State Services (DSS).

According to her, a man alleged to be the custodian of the proceeds of extortion was also arrested in Owerri, Imo State, during the exercise.

She alleged that various sums of money were found on the suspects during the operation before they were taken into ICPC custody.

The News Agency of Nigeria reports that this is coming less than three months after 37 FRSC officials were arrested in a similar operation in August.

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Okoduwa said the latest operation was conducted simultaneously in four states namely Imo, Ondo, Yobe and Zamfara, between Oct. 2 and Oct. 5.

The exercise, according to her, followed an official complaint from the management of the FRSC of extortionary activities by some marshals of its patrol teams nationwide.

She said:

“The FRSC management had, in the complaint, observed that incidents of extortion were rampant on highways across the country.

“The just-concluded operation was conducted in the four states of Imo, Zamfara, Ondo and Yobe, which are not part of the six states where the earlier operation was carried out.”

A breakdown of the new figure shows that nine officials and a civilian were arrested in Owerri; eight in Kaura-Namoda, Zamfara; five in Ore, Ondo, and four in Potiskum, Yobe.

“All the officials and the civilian arrested have been granted administrative bail pending their prosecution by the commission at the conclusion of investigations,” she said.

 

NAN