The Nigeria Police Force has arrested vandals with stolen tower members belonging to the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) as well as cables packed in a truck along the Damboa-Maiduguri 132-kilovolt transmission line in Borno State.
This was made known in a statement on Tuesday by the General Manager of Public Affairs at TCN, Ndidi Mbah.
The company said the incident happened on Wednesday and the vandals are currently in police custody in Damboa.
TCN explained that the stolen items were from its facilities, which are currently under reconstruction due to a previous vandalism attack.
“On Wednesday, August 7th, 2024, security operatives apprehended vandals in a blue pickup van loaded with sacks containing tower members and cables stolen from transmission towers along the Damboa/Maiduguri 132KV transmission line. The vandals were arrested by the Nigeria Police and are currently in custody at the Damboa Police Station. They will be transferred to the National Police Force Headquarters in Maiduguri.
“The tower members and cables were stolen from the towers along the Damboa/Maiduguri 132kV transmission line, which is still under reconstruction due to a previous vandalism attack on the same line,” Ndidi Mbah said.
DAILY POST recalls that vandalisation of critical electricity facilities has been a reoccurring menace in Nigeria’s supply industry.
On June 12, vandals blew up TCN’s towers along the Damaturu-Maiduguri 330kV Single Circuit Transmission Line, throwing Maiduguri into darkness.