The Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) has arrested 210 beggars in Abuja over suspected links to criminal activities, according to the Social Development Secretariat.
Acting Director of the Social Welfare Department, Gloria Onwuka, revealed this on Thursday while relocating the arrested individuals to the Vocational and Rehabilitation Centre in Bwari. She said the arrests, part of the ongoing ‘Operation Sweep Abuja Clean’ campaign, involved 58 women, 72 children, and 80 men.
Onwuka explained that the operation followed rising public complaints about crimes such as one-chance robberies and kidnappings linked to unhoused individuals.
“Many beggars go as far as hiring other people’s children to beg, without the knowledge of the parents. We even caught a woman claiming to have breast cancer, but there was no wound when her bandage was removed,” she noted.
Also speaking, Adamu Gwary, Director of FCTA Security Services Department, represented by Peter Olumuji, said the activities of street beggars pose a serious security risk to residents.
