The suspected vandal, Ibrahim Aliyu, a 24-year-old man from Angwan-Kanawa in Niger State, has been arrested for allegedly stealing from the Federal University of Technology, Minna (FUT Minna).
He was caught after reportedly breaking into the university’s generator house and cutting off a large section of armoured electric cable worth millions of naira.
The incident happened on June 12 when the suspect allegedly entered the school premises by scaling the perimeter fence.
Once inside, he is said to have broken through the iron protector on the generator room door and removed about 16 meters of thick armoured cable linked to the school’s power system.
The damaged cable is estimated to cost around ₦2 million.
According to the Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO) in Niger State, SP Wasiu Abiodun, the university’s internal security team, with help from members of the local vigilante group, worked together to catch the suspect as he attempted to sell the stolen materials.
“During interrogation, the suspect confessed to perpetrating the act alone. He peeled off the rubber covering of the armoured cable, concealed it in a sack, and took it home,” Abiodun stated.
The suspect has now been handed over to the police authorities. The PPRO noted that further investigations are ongoing, and the suspect will be charged in court once the process is complete.
In another similar case, two men — Mohammed Isah, 25, and Ishiaku Ali, 30, both residents of Kwagana village near Beni — were also arrested for a separate act of vandalism involving electric cables in the Sarkin Pawa area of Munya Local Government.
The two men were stopped by a joint patrol team of the police and local vigilantes while traveling along the Beni/Sarkin-Pawa road. They were found with over 100 meters of stolen electric cable in a white Lexus vehicle bearing registration number RKD 84 AU. A cable cutter was also recovered from the scene.
SP Abiodun noted that both men confessed to planning to transport the cables to Abuja for sale. They are now in the custody of the State Criminal Investigation Department (SCID) in Minna, where legal steps are being taken against them.
