The Police Command in Kano State said it would prioritize the fight against drug abuse to reduce crime in the state.

SP Abdullahi Haruna-Kiyawa, the Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO) said that the investigation showed a link between drug abuse and crime.

“Majority of criminals use drugs to perpetuate their acts,’’ Huruna-Kiyawa said.

He said that thugs popularly called “Yan daba’’ were among the major security problems in the state, particularly in the metropolitan local governments.

The PPRO listed the local governments as Dala, Fagge, Gwale, Kano Municipal, Kumbotso, Nassarawa, Tarauni, and Ungogo.

Haruna-Kiyawa said an investigation further showed that the majority of Yan dabas smoke cannabis Sativa before breaking into houses to steal property.

“So, thuggery is largely associated with drug abuse, particularly smoking of cannabis Sativa.

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“More than 80 percent of these hoodlums used cannabis Sativa, nine out of every 10 of the thugs arrested confessed to having taken it,’’ he said.

According to him, other crimes in the metropolitan areas and other local governments included murder and kidnapping.

He said in 2021, the command arrested 1,576 thugs and 179 drug dealers.

“We recovered 50 bags and 599 parcels of dried leaves suspected to be cannabis Sativa during the period under review.

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“These thugs normally attack innocent people and go away with their cell phones, money, and other valuables,’’ he said.

The PPRO also said that the command recovered 874 knives and 1,718 SIM cards from thugs during the period.

Haruna-Kiyawa urged residents to be security conscious and continue to provide the police with information that would assist in checking crime.