Linus Aleke in Abuja

The Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Police Command has uncovered a criminal syndicate allegedly involved in the production and circulation of fake diplomatic and official government number plates, which criminals use to evade security checkpoints and gain unauthorised access to restricted areas.

The command said the illegal practice had become a growing security concern, as some individuals use the fake plates as a cover to carry out criminal activities within the nation’s capital while avoiding routine law enforcement checks.

The Commissioner of Police, FCT Command, Ahmed Sanusi, disclosed this on Friday during a press briefing at the command headquarters in Abuja, saying investigations had led to the dismantling of a syndicate responsible for issuing the fake number plates.

He said: “They use these fake numbers to beat security checkpoints. They use them to go into ministries and parastatals unstopped because everybody feels once you are a diplomat or have these plates, you are a big man. Help us identify them. Raise an alarm and we will arrest them.”

Sanusi revealed that some individuals paid between N500,000 and N1.7 million to obtain the fake diplomatic and official number plates, suggesting that they had specific criminal intentions for acquiring them.

“Some of these things are ranging between N500,000 to N1.7 million for them to procure. This will tell you that they are making such huge expenditure because they have an agenda to fulfil with it, which they feel is bigger than the cost they are incurring. Now they will face punishment that is bigger than both the cost they incur and the agenda they are planning to use it to perpetrate,” he said.

The Commissioner said the investigation commenced shortly after he assumed office, following reports of the proliferation and unauthorised use of diplomatic and government registration plates by individuals who were not entitled to possess them.

“Upon my assumption of duty as the Commissioner of Police, FCT Command, my attention was drawn to the proliferation and unauthorised use of diplomatic and official government licence plate numbers by unauthorised individuals. I immediately ordered a comprehensive investigation into this disturbing trend, which revealed that these individuals use such plate numbers as a cover to perpetrate crimes within the Federal Capital Territory and evade detection and arrest,” he said.

According to him, the investigation uncovered both users of the fake plates and elements involved in their production and supply.

“The suspects from whom these plate numbers were recovered are currently in custody and will be charged to court upon the conclusion of investigation,” he said.

Sanusi, however, noted that the manufacturers of the fake plates were operating outside the FCT but had been identified by investigators.

“We are on their trail. We’ve gotten their identities. That’s why we are not displaying our suspects regarding this so that they will not know that we are coming after them,” he said.

The Commissioner urged residents and journalists to report vehicles with suspicious diplomatic registration plates, stressing that genuine diplomatic plates follow recognised formats.

Meanwhile, Sanusi disclosed that the command had also recovered vandalised public infrastructure, including drainage covers, solar-powered street lights, armoured electricity cables and internet communication cables stolen from different parts of the territory.

He said the recoveries were made through intelligence-led operations and proactive anti-crime patrols in Maitama, Garki, Durumi, Jabi, Apo Legislative Quarters, Lugbe and Nyanya.

Five suspects arrested in connection with the recovered items were identified as Godwin Aja, Mustapha Nasiru, Ibrahim Garba, Abdulrasheed Sale and Dabarani Mujitafa.

Describing the vandalism of public facilities as economic sabotage, Sanusi said: “The removal of drainage covers, solar street lights, armoured cables used for the transmission of high-voltage electricity and internet communication cables worth millions of naira by a few unscrupulous individuals for personal gain has directly contributed to road traffic accidents, injuries to pedestrians, increased incidents of street crime in areas plunged into darkness and the disruption of electricity supply to entire communities through the theft of high-tension power cables.”

He warned scrap dealers and buyers of stolen public infrastructure that the command would continue investigations to dismantle the entire criminal network.

“I want to use this opportunity to send a clear warning to all purchasers, receivers and dealers in stolen public infrastructure that the FCT Police Command is coming after you. We have commenced extensive investigations and will not relent until every link in the supply, distribution and disposal chain of these stolen public assets is identified and brought to justice,” he said.

Sanusi added that the recovered items would be handed over to the Federal Capital Territory Administration for reinstallation, while reaffirming the command’s commitment to reducing crime through intelligence-driven policing and public collaboration.