Over 1,700 shanties and containerised shops, illegally constructed on the railway line between the stretch of Fagba and Agege, were at the weekend pulled down by the Enforcement Unit of the Lagos State Environmental and Special Offences (Taskforce), thereby dislodging a hord of hoodlums hibernating in the area.
During the exercise, led by the Agency Chairman, CSP Olayinka Egbeyemi, dangerous weapons as well as various prohibited drugs, such as Cannabis Sativa, aka Indian hemp, Codeine, Skunk and Tramadol, were recovered, a noticeable development from Egbeyemi’s submission that, “These illegal shanties and containerised shops were occupied by miscreants and hoodlums who terrorised innocent citizens around Fagba, Iju-Ishaga and Pen-Cinema area, dispossessing them of their valuables, especially early in the day and late at night”.
The Taskforce, in a press release by its Public Relations Officer (PRO), Adebayo Taofiq stated, “It was an eyesore seeing miscreants and hoodlums freely smoking and selling Indian hemp, even as under-age boys and girls engaged in brazen prostitution around Fagba Railway Lines”.
Recounting the damages recorded in the area during the #EndSARS protests, the Agency boss revealed that information at his dispossal pointed at the hoodlums occupying the makeshift abodes to have been architects of the colossal loss of properties in the area.
His words: “Investigations conducted revealed that miscreants and hoodlums occupying these illegal shanties were responsible for the destructions of public properties and looting of shops immediately after the recent ‘EndSARS’ protest around Agege”.
The Lagos State Government, in reaction to complaints of criminal activities in the area, issued a 7-day removal notice to owners and occupants of the shanties and still gave them additional 21-days grace to move their belongings and vacate the entire area, before embarking on the demolition exercise.
The Force PRO, however, enjoined members of the public to support government in salvaging the state from the clutches of these notorious criminals by reporting any noticeable criminal activities around them to security agencies.
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