By Pius Awunah
The Federal Capital Territory Administration has announced the seizure of more than 700 vehicles for offences including the use of fake number plates, illegal tinted glass, and other traffic violations as part of its renewed clampdown on criminally inclined motorists in Abuja.
The Director of the FCTA Department of Security Services, Adamu Gwary, made the disclosure during a late-night stop-and-search operation at Apo-Wassa junction and the Karu axis of the FCT, on Monday,August 18,2025.
Represented by the Secretary of the Command and Control Centre, Dr. Peter Olumuji, Gwary said the exercise is the second phase of Operation Sweep Abuja Clean, a multi-agency initiative aimed at curbing “one-chance” robberies and recovering stolen vehicles.
“As of now in Operation Sweep, we have impounded over 700 vehicles from the first and second phases.
“The operation has drastically reduced the incidence of one chance to the barest minimum.
“Our stop-and-search exercise has made it clear to criminals that no matter where they are in the FCT, the team will always reach them,” he said.
He explained that intelligence gathered from victims revealed that most vehicles used in “one-chance” robberies were illegally tinted, unregistered, or bore fake number plates.
Gwary warned motorists, particularly commercial drivers, against using tinted glasses, stressing that criminals exploit them to conceal their activities.
“We see people who are into businesses using tinted glass. Most of the victims that we have interrogated and are victims of ‘one chance’ always tell us that the vehicles they boarded were tinted,” he added.
The task force, he disclosed, recovered seven stolen vehicles within the last week alone, while appealing to residents to endure the temporary inconveniences caused by the stop-and-search operations, noting that the measures were meant to safeguard lives and property.
Also speaking, the Head of Operations, Directorate of Road Traffic Services, Deborah Osho, highlighted that the joint task force has intensified efforts to rid Abuja of unregistered and unpainted taxis cabs often linked to criminal activities.
She said several vehicles had been impounded for traffic offences ranging from driving against traffic to using plates not assigned to their vehicles.
“Most of the ‘one-chance’ vehicles either have fake number plates not traceable to the actual vehicles or operate as unpainted taxi cabs, making it difficult to identify them.
“Today in Karu, you can see the huge number of vehicles apprehended. This is sending a clear message that Abuja is too hot for criminals,” Osho stated.
Both officials assured that the clampdown would continue until sanity is restored on the city’s roads and urged residents to cooperate with enforcement officers for a safer FCT.
