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Daily Post reports that the Cross River State Command of the Nigeria Hunters and Forests Security Service has revealed that it has rescued several kidnap victims from creeks and forests in the state.
The State Commandant, Joseph Omini, disclosed this during an interview in his office in Calabar.
He said the Service’s personnel are trained to undertake operations inside the forests and creeks to arrest criminals who are later handed over to the police for prosecution.
“We have arrested many kidnappers who run into the forests or creeks to hide with their victims. We have also rescued kidnap victims and returned them to their families.
“Since we are based within the communities we know how to locate the criminals within the forests.
“This has positioned us to monitor, locate and checkmate the rate of criminality in the state,” he said.
Omini added that the Service has the mandate to combat illegal mining and criminal activities in Cross River forests.
He further explained that the Service is subsumed under the Prisons and Immigration Act. According to him, the organisation’s activities are within the confines of the Act.
“We operate within the knowledge of the heads of those agencies and the Inspector General of Police who support us with arms.
“There are several mines in the state. To stop illegal mining we carry out investigations first to ascertain the licensed miners and those not authorised to mine. We remove the illegal miners and make them face prosecution,” Omimi said.
He said efforts are ongoing to get the President give his assent to the Bill establishing the Service in order to expand its scope and activities across the country.
