Village Head, Lawmaker arrested, paraded by Police allegedly for stealing Community transformer

Village Head, Lawmaker arrested, paraded by Police allegedly for stealing Community transformer

The Gombe State Police Command has displayed the village head of Garin Majidadi in Akko Local Government Area and a councillor representing Kumo East for allegedly stealing and selling a community transformer.

Muhammad Majidadi, the village head, Abdullahi M. Panda, the councillor, and Muhammad Sani from Sarkin Yaki Quarters were apprehended following reports that they had stolen and sold the transformer serving their community.

During the parade of the suspects, ASP Buhari Abdullahi, the police spokesperson, disclosed that credible intelligence from Akko division led to their arrest and the recovery of the stolen transformer from Garin Majidadi village. Investigations revealed that the transformer was sold for N1.5 million to Bello Ardo Kumo.

ASP Buhari confirmed the recovery of the transformer and assured that further investigations were ongoing. He stated that once investigations were completed, the suspects would face charges in court.

In an interview, Muhammad Majidadi, the village head, explained that the transformer had been dysfunctional and inactive for over a decade, with many of its parts stolen by vandals. He stated that after informing their district head, they decided to sell the remaining parts to raise funds for boreholes. However, they were arrested during the process of finding a buyer.

Councillor Abdullahi Panda denied giving authorization for the sale of the transformer. While acknowledging that Majidadi informed him of the plan to sell it, he claimed he instructed Majidadi to document the intention and inform the district head, advising them to wait until Monday. “He acted without waiting and sold it; that is my knowledge of the situation,” Panda asserted.