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Speaker 1: Edo State Police Command of Nigeria Police Force has confirmed

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the arrest of ninety five persons in connection with the

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killing of more than fifteen people between April twenty fifth,

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twenty twenty five and now in the renewed deadly and

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bloody Apparents Supremacy secret cult war in the state among

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members of the Black Axe Confraternity Akaha Maffi Confraternity aka

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Great Men and I Confraternity aka Airnods, which started with

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the killing of a physiotherapist simply identified as Alex and

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another individual at the University of Benin Teaching Hospital ubth

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back Gate were boo in Benin with the Edo State

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government led by Governor Monday Opepolo, launching a retaliatory war

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against businesses and individuals allegedly aiding secret cult killings in

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the state. Thus sealed off Eterno Hotel planned to demolish

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the hotel owned by People’s Democratic Party PDP Chieftain Honorable

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Matthew Idaia Kenwan, who was the Director General of Assuan

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Oggier campaign organization in the last governorship election in the state,

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on the ground that a particular secret cult group members

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gathered at the Eterno Hotel to plan their recent killings

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in the state, and in addition, the Edo State Governor

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also sealed off and marked a residential building for demolition

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also owed by a PDP chieftain Francis and Egbuneki. According

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to the police, the Edo State Police Command arrested ninety

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five suspected cultists and recovered two locally made pistols, one

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single barrel shotgun and twenty four live cartridges in sustained

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intelligence driven raids of their enclaves in Benin City and

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environs for the past week. These suspects, who belonged to

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the notorious Maphites A A and A Hyekon fraternities, were

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suspected to be responsible for the cult supremacy killings in

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the state. The Commissioner of Police CP. Monday Agbonica urges

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parents and guardians to keep a tab on the activity

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of their wards in order to curb the menace of cultism.

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He further warned youths in the state to desist from

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joining unlawful societies that could only dim their future and

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ultimately claim their lives or that of other innocent persons.

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Sixty four of the suspects have been charged to court

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and remanded while investigation continues on the remaining suspects. The

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Police Command spokesperson Moses Yamo stated Office of the Chief

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Press Secretary to the Edo State Governor in a statement

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state that Edo State Governor, Senator munday ok Pepolo has

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issued a stern warning tomandlords, declaring that his administration will

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not hesitate to demolish buildings linked to criminal activities such

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as kidnapping, cultism and rituals. The governor emphasized his administrations

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resolved to ensure a crime free environment in the state.

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Governor oc Pepolo gave the warning while personally supervising the

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demolition of a building located in the Ogre Gay area

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of Benin City. The building was reportedly used for internet

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fraud and kidnapping, with victims allegedly held against there will

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then subjected to ritualistic practices. Visibly disturbed by what he

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witnessed at the site, the governor said, I am saddened

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by what is happening here. Children were kidnapped and kept

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here for years. You can see the shrines in this apartment.

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This is wickedness in its highest form. This kind of

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evil is unacceptable in Edo’s state, reaffirming his administration’s commitment

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to security, The governor vowed we will continue to fight

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crime and criminality. Wherever they hide, we will fish them

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out and demolish their hideouts. There will be no sanctuary

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for criminals in Edo’s state. We are serious and resolute.

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HEADO must be safe. Governor o Pevolo also announced plans

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to repurpose the sites of demolished properties for public use.

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We are going to build a police station here. Any

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land where such buildings are taken down will be used

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to serve the community, he assured. In a related development,

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the Edo State government has made significant progress in its

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crackdown on cultism following the demolition of an operational base

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belonging to a notorious cult group implicated in recent killings

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in Benin City. The facility, located at the end of

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Arena Street in a magbur Gra, featured a hall, several

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rooms fitted with mattresses, and office spaces believed to have

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served as a hub for the group’s activities. The property

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is also boarded by a mode reportedly used for initiation rituals. Notably,

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the premises also contained an industrial overhead stand and tanks

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donated by its Asia Region twenty sixteen, twenty twenty one.

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This action follows the recent enforcement of a new anti

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cultism law signed by Governor Ogpepolo, which empowers the state

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to demolish properties associated with cult activities. Meanwhile, in response

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to an uptic in cult related violence in the city,

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the state government has sealed off Eterno Hotel, located in

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the heart of Benin’s gra The hotel is allegedly linked

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to another cult group believed to be behind recent killings

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in the area. Governor of Pepolo reiterated his administration’s zero

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tolerance stance. No stone will be left unturned and no individual,

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regardless of their status, will be spared under the provisions

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of the Cultism Related Offenses Law. We are determined to

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restore peace and order in Edo’s state, fred Ichua, the

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governor Chief Press Secretary, stated in another press release, the

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Chief Press Secretary office reported that the Edo State Governor,

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Senator Monday og Pepolo, has launched a crackdown on crime

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related properties, beginning with the demolition of buildings connected to

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kidnappings and cult related violence in the state. During the

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demolition of a residential duplex in Benin City used for

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kidnapping and organ harvesting. The Chief Press Secretary to the Governor, Fredicua,

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who spoke on behalf of Governor Monday Okpepolo, told journalists

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that the government had also sealed off Eterno hotel and

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an event center. These facilities, according to Governor ok Pepolo,

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are being used by cult groups as gathering points before

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launching attacks that claim several lives. Misterrichua confirmed that the

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demolished property was the site of a gruesome crime involving

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the abduction and killing of a young woman for organ harvesting.

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He revealed that the suspect has been arrested in Lagos

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and will be extradited to Edo’s State to face prosecution.

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The building was where the crime occurred and it is

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owned by the father of the suspect, who has also

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made useful statements to the authorities. Mister Richua stated his

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Excellency has directed that this is only the beginning. More

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buildings used for criminal activities will be demolished. This is

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backed by existing laws enacted by the present administration. He

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emphasized that the crackdown was not politically motivated. Contrary to speculations,

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this is not a political witch hunt. These buildings were

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used for acts that contravene the laws of Edo State.

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The governor has made it clear that anyone involved in

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cultism or related crimes will face the full force of

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the law, he added. The owner of the demolished building,

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mister Martin’s Ogeniwor, recounted the shocking moment he learned of

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the crime on the twenty third of this month. While

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returning home. My wife called to inform me that our

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son had murdered a woman in his quarters. I immediately

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reported to the police, who followed me home and helped

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convey the corpse to the mortuary. I’ve been in police

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custody since then, he said. Mister Ogeniwor further disclosed that

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his twenty eight year old son had long exhibited troubling behavior.

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I trained him from primary school through university in Ecpoma.

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For over a decade, he has been a problem. I

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took him to rehab, neuropsychiatric centers and even traditional healers.

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He rarely slept at home, drank excessively, and was often missing.

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Now he has destroyed everything I worked for. This house

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was my retirement plan, and now I’m watching it being

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torn down. Its heartbreaking, he lamented. Authorities confirmed the suspect

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was apprehended in Lagos, with human body parts recovered from him.

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Investigations are ongoing as the government intensifies efforts to stamp

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out kidnapping and cultism across the state. Fredicua, the Chief

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Press Secretary to Edo’s state Governor, in a feature news

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story published during the week on the actions and activities

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of the state governor in tackling kidnapping and secret cult

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activities in the state, said a government worth its salt

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will do all it needs to protect its people in

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Edo State. Governor of Pepolo has shown clear and per

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leadership by taking decisive steps to confront two of the

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most persistent threats to the states peace, cultism and kidnapping

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from the outset of his administration. He identified these crimes

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as a grave menace to societal stability and public safety.

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He promptly convened a Security Council meeting and issued a

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forty eight hour ultimatum to the Commissioner of Police to

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halt the bloody cult clashes that erupted in parts of

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Benine City, sending a clear message of zero tolerance. To

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give his words legal backing, Governor of Pemholo signed into

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law two critical legislations, the Secret Cult and Similar Activities

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Prohibition Law twenty twenty five and the Kidnapping Prohibition Amendment

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Law twenty twenty five. These laws provide severe consequences for

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offenders twenty one years imprisonment for sponsors of cultism, ten

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years for individuals having cultists, and the death penalty for

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cult related killings. Similarly, convicted kidnappers face the death penalty,

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while any property used to facilitate the crime is to

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be confiscated and demolished. However, Governor of Pevholo’s approach has

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gone beyond legislation. It is being matched with deliberate and

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determined implementation. Since the enactment of these laws, Heado State

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has seen the demolition of several buildings used as hideouts

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by kidnappers or as rendezvous points for cult groups. In

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March twenty twenty five, the government began pulling down structures

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in Inner and a Roami used in high profile kidnapping cases,

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including those where victims were kept until ransoms were paid.

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In one instance, a property in Sioriri eerr in Owen

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East Local government area reportedly belonging to a kidnap informant

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was flattened after investigations confirmed its use in coordinating abductions.

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The crackdown on cultism has been equally forceful. Apartments and

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facilities identified as cult meeting points have been sealed and

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marked for demolition. A notable example is a turnout hotel

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located in the upscale gr or axis of Benin City,

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where cultists allegedly convene to strategize before launching coordinated attacks

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across the city. Security agencies have continued to apprehend suspects

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and the state government has remained firm in its result

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that anyone found culpable will be prosecuted and punished accordingly,

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said freditures Auldi, bringing BRINGI in a morgical way,