By Precious Owolabi, Ado-Ekiti

Operatives of the local vigilante group in Ikere-Ekiti, the headquarters of Ikere Local Government Area of Ekiti State, have arrested six suspects and handed them over to the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), over allegations of cultivating Indian hemp.

The suspects were apprehended in a forest within the community following intelligence gathered by the local security network.

Speaking during the parade of the suspects at his palace, the Ogoga of Ikere-Ekiti, Oba Samuel Adu, said the palace acted on an intelligence report which stated that “some strange-looking men were in the Ikere forests working on a plantation that looked suspicious.”

According to him, “Ever since the unfortunate robbery incident last year, we have set up our own internal security. We waited until we were certain of their activities before moving in and arresting them.”

The traditional ruler stated that while he is committed to working with security agencies to rid his community of criminal elements, he expressed regret that “some  elements, particularly within the agency alerted the chief mastermind of the plantation,  a yet-to-be-identified man known simply as Henry, who is reported to reside in Akure.”

The monarch said: “It pains me that some officers of the security agencies have already  compromised. There have been times when we provided intelligence on how to arrest drug peddlers and traffickers in this community, only for the suspects to be notified. Often, no arrests were made, and those individuals continued to move around as though they were above the law.”

He lamented the increasing rate of drug abuse among youths and called on security agencies to collaborate with the community in tackling the menace.

The Commander of the Narcotics Squad in the NDLEA, Sunday Aina, commended the traditional ruler’s commitment to the fight against crime in the community.

He said: “The issue of drugs and other narcotics is a global challenge, and it is quite unfortunate that it is now on our doorstep. However, I want to assure Kabiyesi and our people that we will not relent until it is reduced to the barest minimum.”

Also speaking, the Chairman of Ikere Local Government, Olu Adamolekun, said, “we cannot continue to live with criminals who are making our environment unsafe. We will brief Governor Biodun  Oyebanji on this development and continue to maintain surveillance to weed out criminal elements from our society.

The six suspects, who all confessed to committing the crime, were said to have mentioned two individuals who they claimed recruited them for the job.

The suspects, it was learnt, have been handed over to the NDLEA for further investigation and possible prosecution.