Police in Abuja have concluded plans to prosecute John Akpabu who attempted to gain entry into the premises of Radio House with grenades and ammunition about two weeks ago.
The suspect, earlier designated a terror suspect, would be arraigned for arms possession upon conclusion of investigation, the police authorities said on Thursday.
Two weeks ago, Akpabu was arrested with three canisters of smoke grenades and 37 live rounds of AK47 ammunition as he attempted to enter the Radio House, Abuja, which was the venue of a ministerial press briefing and has been held in custody since May 21, 2012.
In defense of his actions, the suspect claimed that the exhibits belonged to his late elder brother, who had served as a policeman in Bayelsa State and that he (Akpabu) took them to Radio House to give them to the Minister of Information, Labaran Maku, in expectation that his brother’s entitlements would be paid. The FCT Commissioner of Police, Ade Shinaba, has however debunked Akpabu’s claims that the ammunition and smoke grenades belonged to his late policeman brother, stressing that the police found no record of the officer (his late elder brother) that allegedly owned the articles.
“The suspect claimed that the items found on him belonged to his late brother who was a policemen, but the name he gave us did not tally with any name in the police record,” he said.
The FCT Police Public Relations Officer, Moshood Jimoh, has stated that investigations into the matter are yet to be concluded but that the suspect was going to be tried for illegal possession of firearms. He also explained why Akpabu was remended in police custody, an act in direct contradiction with the directive of the acting Inspector-General of Police, saying that the suspect could not be granted bail due to the nature of his crimes – illegal possession of firearms.
