The Police in Lagos yesterday said it would soon arraign 84 Merchant Navy personnel, now in its custody, for allegedly undertaking military training secretly, without approval. A reliable police source at the Area �A� Command at the Lion Building in Lagos, who pleaded anonymity, said that the suspects would have been moved to the State CID, Panti, Yaba, yesterday, for proper investigation and prosecution.
The suspects, who are aged between 25 and 35, were reportedly deceived into the training, on the assurance that they would be assisted to secure jobs in some oil companies.
Most of them, according to the source, had to pay between N5,000 and N6,000 each before being admitted into the training.
�They were using these young men to commit all sorts of illegalities in the streets of Lagos,�� he added.
The source, who described the suspects as militants, added that the premises under which they were allegedly operating was equally under investigation by the command.
According to him, the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF) had earlier written a petition to the Command about three months ago, requesting the recovery of the said property.
Items recovered when the property was raided included two mini-buses, motorcycles and office equipment, belonging to the SGF�s office and military kits.
�About N25 million was said to have been discovered in the account of the leader of the militants,�� the source added. When contacted, the Special Adviser on Media and Communications to the Merchant Navy, Mr Stock Isiramen, who confirmed the arrests, added that they had briefed their lawyer on the issue.