CROSS RIVER POLICE ARREST THREE MORE SUSPECTS OVER ALLEGED STREETLIGHT CABLE VANDALISM IN CALABAR

CROSS RIVER STATE POLICE COMMAND

PRESS RELEASE

CROSS RIVER POLICE ARREST THREE MORE SUSPECTS OVER ALLEGED STREETLIGHT CABLE VANDALISM IN CALABAR

….*Fresh arrests reinforce sustained efforts to protect public infrastructure under CP Ajo Geoffrey Ordue’s leadership*

The Cross River State Police Command has arrested three additional suspects in a separate case involving the alleged vandalisation and theft of streetlight panels and armoured cables in State housing estate in Calabar, as the Command sustains its efforts to combat the destruction and theft of public electrical infrastructure across the State.

2. The latest arrests follow the report of an alleged vandalism incident involving streetlight infrastructure within the estate in Calabar. The matter was formally reported on October 16, 2026, an electrical consultant to the Cross River State Electrification Agency, following information concerning the arrest of persons allegedly linked to the incident.
3. Acting on the report, detectives attached to the State Housing Division commenced investigations, leading to the arrest of three suspects identified as Daniel Garuba, 28; Edem Lukas, 24; and Richard Edet, 22. The suspects are being investigated in connection with the alleged offences, while inquiries continue to establish the circumstances of the incident and the individual roles, if any, of those arrested.
4. The latest development comes against the backdrop of an earlier investigation into the alleged vandalisation of a transformer at Agbo Ntoe Layout, off Parliamentary Extension, Calabar, which led to the arrest of Peter Adie, 36, and subsequent arrests of other suspects over suspected links to the theft or receipt of electricity materials. These are separate investigative developments, and no connection between the suspects in the two cases is being asserted at this stage.
5. The Command considers the protection of public infrastructure a significant aspect of its responsibility to safeguard public assets and support the delivery of essential services. Streetlights and electricity infrastructure serve important community needs, and their destruction or theft can impose additional costs on public institutions and residents. The Command is therefore intensifying lawful investigative and enforcement efforts to address such offences.
6. The Commissioner of Police, Cross River State Command, CP Ajo Geoffrey Ordue, psc, mnips, mspsp, reiterates the Command’s resolve to investigate reported cases of vandalism, identify all persons reasonably suspected to be involved, and pursue prosecution where the available evidence supports it. He also urges residents to report suspicious activities around public infrastructure and to avoid taking the law into their own hands.
7. The Command assures the public that investigations into the cases are ongoing. The suspects remain entitled to the presumption of innocence, and their individual culpability will be determined through due process of law.

E-signed:
ASP EITOKPAH SUNDAY AKATA, Anipr, Mnisma
Police Public Relations Officer
For: Commissioner of Police
Cross River State Command
17th October , 2026.