Days After Arrest Of 3 Cable Thieves, FAAN Nabs 21 Touts, Others At Lagos Airport

The Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) has nabbed 21 persons including touts, illegal foreign exchange dealers, hawkers, and scavengers at the Murtala Muhammed Airport, Lagos.

This was disclosed in a statement issued on Sunday in Lagos by FAAN Director of Public Affairs and Consumer Protection, Abdullahi Yakubu-Funtua.

Yakubu-Funtua said that the suspects had been handed over to the police for further action.

According to him, the arrest is part of FAAN’s efforts to sanitise the airport environment and rid it of touts and others engaged in illegitimate activities.

“The Joint Monitoring Task Force and the Aviation Security Crime Investigation and Intelligence (AVSEC-CII) Unit have since the past few weeks conducted raids in this regard.

“Cable thieves and other miscreants have been apprehended in the course of these raids.

“On Friday, Aug. 4, 2023, the Murtala Muhammed Airport (MMA) JMTF and AVSEC-CII raided the ITZ 1 and 2 landside, the car parks, and the airport access roads.

“In the course of the raid, a total of twenty-one persons including touts, illegal foreign exchange dealers, hawkers, and scavengers were arrested.

“The apprehended suspects have since been transferred to the Nigerian Police Force through the CII for further necessary action,” he said.

Yakubu-Funtua warned those who had no legitimate business at airports to keep off or risk being arrested.

He said the safety and security of airport users and the airport environment would not be compromised.

The director restated FAAN’s commitment to its core values of safety, security, and comfort of all airport users.

Meanwhile, Kanyi Daily reported that FAAN a few days ago, arrested three suspected cable thieves while digging and cutting electric cables connecting the Murtala Muhammed International Airport Powerhouse (International Wing, MMA) to the Domestic Terminal(MMA), Lagos.