The Oyo State Police Command has arrested three suspected members of a railway vandalism syndicate and recovered stolen rail tracks valued at about N200 million during an operation in Surulere Local Government Area of the state.

In a statement issued on Tuesday, the Police Public Relations Officer, CSP Olayinka Ayanlade, said the arrests followed credible intelligence provided by a member of the public. Operatives of the Command Monitoring Unit intercepted the suspects at Gambari, Orile-Igbon, at about 1:45 p.m. on July 14 before the stolen materials could be moved to their final destination.

The suspects were identified as Waheed Ayinde, 54, Muhammed Sani, 27, and Hassan Ibrahim, 22. Police also recovered a HOWO truck with registration number CAL 972 XA, allegedly used to transport the vandalised rail tracks.

According to the police, preliminary investigations showed that the railway tracks were illegally removed from Niger State and transported into Oyo State as part of a coordinated operation, with Lagos identified as the intended destination.

Investigators said the suspects played different roles in the alleged operation, including transporting the stolen tracks, coordinating the movement of the items, and providing temporary storage in Ogbomoso before they were to be moved onward.

Ayanlade said the suspects had made useful statements and were cooperating with investigators, while efforts were ongoing to arrest other members of the syndicate and recover additional exhibits linked to the case.

The Commissioner of Police, Olugbenga Abimbola, commended the member of the public whose tip-off led to the successful operation, describing it as evidence of the effectiveness of intelligence-led policing and community collaboration.

He also urged residents to continue providing timely and credible information to security agencies, reaffirming the command’s commitment to protecting critical national infrastructure and tackling economic sabotage across the state.