The Police has arrested a church pastor and his alleged accomplice in connection with a syndicate operating an interstate vehicle theft ring.
The suspects—identified as Edwin Nwabueze, a self-proclaimed pastor, and Sadiq Jamiu—were apprehended following an investigation into the theft of a Toyota Camry at UTC Plaza in the Garki District of Abuja.
FCT Police Public Relations Officer, SP Josephine Adeh, confirmed the arrests in a statement released on Friday.
According to Adeh, Nwabueze—an indigene of Oji River Local Government Area in Enugu State residing in Benue State—claimed to be a cleric at the Salvation Power Bible Ministry, located in the North Bank area of Benue.
Police operatives tracked Nwabueze to his residence following intelligence-led investigations. Upon his arrest, he led detectives to a secondary location where Jamiu was taken into custody.
Previous Record and Syndicate Network
Preliminary investigations revealed that Nwabueze had previously been arrested by the Benue State Police Command over similar vehicle theft allegations.
”Further findings indicated that the two suspects were key members of an organized criminal network involved in stealing and selling vehicles across multiple states,” Adeh said.
The command noted that investigations remain ongoing to dismantle the broader network and track down fleeing members of the ring.
Both suspects remain in police custody and will be formally charged in court upon the conclusion of the investigation.
