Thirty-seven people have been arrested by the Yobe State Islamic Police Corps’ joint squad, known as Hisbah, NDLEA, and Policemen, on charges of prostitution and illegal alcohol sales in the state’s capital, Damaturu.
Speaking to reporters soon after the arrests, Mohammed Murtala Goni Ahmed, the acting Commander General of Hisbah, who paraded the suspects on Friday at the Police Area Command’s office, said that the arrests had taken place in Damaturu at Zango, Maina Lodge, Ajayi, Bakin Kasuwa, and Last Bus Stop.
He stated that a total of seventeen girls and twenty boys, ages fifteen to eighteen, were detained as suspects.
Get Instantly Update By: Joining Our Whatapps and Telegram Channel
“The examination carried out on the accused additionally demonstrated that, among the men, numerous were discovered to be engaged in the sale of hard drugs, and a few were discovered to be in possession of fifty cartons containing various bottles of beer,” Goni stated.
Speaking with LEADERSHIP, a few of the detained individuals claimed their arrests were incorrect because they were innocent of the charges against them.
Maryam Umar, 19, stated that she was arrested while to Ajayi Joint to purchase food.
Christy Peter, another female suspect, told LEADERSHIP that she and her friend were picked up while at the Maina Lodge purchasing fruit and drinks outside the gate.
According to information acquired, the majority of the suspects were teens and weren’t native to the state; instead, they came from distant countries including the Republics of Niger and Chad, as well as Kano, Gombe, Borno, Bauchi, and Plateau State.
Additionally, in an interview with journalists, Alhaji Yusuf Umar Potiskum, Commissioner of the Ministry of Religion Affairs, gave the state’s citizens assurances that the Hisbah members will put up great effort to earn the trust that has been placed in them.
Potiskum praised Governor Mai Mala Buni for his vision and dedication to preserving moral principles derived from Islamic teachings.
He bemoaned the high degree of moral degeneration in the community, which he claimed was the root cause of the numerous incidences of drug misuse, rape, and abandoned children. He felt that Hisbah was essential in combating these threats.