Blackout Saboteur Jailed: Transformer Cable Vandal Bags Five Years in Kogi as NSCDC Cracks Down on Power Infrastructure Attackers

The Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), Kogi State Command, has secured the conviction of a transformer cable vandal as part of its sustained crackdown on the destruction of Critical National Assets and Infrastructure.

A Federal High Court sitting in Lokoja on Monday sentenced Akoji Jonah to five years’ imprisonment after finding him guilty of vandalising armoured transformer cables belonging to Kogi State Electricity Development Limited (KEDL) in Biraidu Community, Dekina Local Government Area.

The court’s decision followed his prosecution on charges bordering on vandalism of critical electricity infrastructure and economic sabotage.

The conviction comes amid growing concerns over the increasing vandalisation of power installations across the country, a trend that has repeatedly disrupted electricity supply, left communities in blackout and undermined economic activities.

Reacting to the judgment, Kogi State Commandant of the NSCDC, Aletan Olumide Ebenezer, praised the Command’s Legal Unit, led by DCC Ike F. Ugochukwu, for its diligence and professionalism in securing the conviction.

He also credited the success to painstaking intelligence gathering and investigation by operatives of the Command.

According to the Commandant, the sentence sends a strong message to individuals and groups involved in the destruction of public utilities and other critical national assets.

He reaffirmed the NSCDC’s commitment to protecting electricity infrastructure and ensuring that perpetrators are identified, apprehended and prosecuted.

Ebenezer warned criminals to steer clear of acts capable of disrupting power supply, stifling economic development and endangering public safety, stressing that the Command would continue intelligence-driven operations aimed at rooting out vandals and other economic saboteurs across the state.

The NSCDC further urged residents to remain vigilant and promptly report suspicious movements or activities around transformers, power lines and other critical infrastructure to security agencies.

The Command maintained that safeguarding critical national assets remains essential to improving power supply and protecting public investments across Kogi State.