The Lagos State Taskforce on Environmental and Special Offences (Enforcement Unit) said it had concluded its plans to prosecute hoodlums, who attacked its officials on Tuesday in the Alapere area of the state.

It was gathered that the hoodlums, who were about to burn the Alapere Police Station over the clampdown on motorcyclists plying illegal routes, attacked the enforcement team of the task force, which responded to a distress call.

Legaldeskng, learnt that the hoodlums attacked the officials with stones, iron rods, broken bottles and cutlasses, and in the process, injured the team’s driver, Ojo Tobiloba, and damaged the task force’s vehicles.

The task force’s Public Relations Officer, Adebayo Taofiq, said in a statement that 38 suspects were arrested and after screening, 26 were released, while the remaining 12 would be charged.

He stated, “The enforcement team of the agency and operatives of the Rapid Response Squad responded to a distress call that some protesters were about to burn down the Alapere Police Station over the clampdown on commercial motorcycle operators plying illegal routes as directed by the Lagos State Commissioner of Police, Hakeem Odumosu.

“On getting to the scene, the protesters came out en masse to attack the enforcement team and in the course of restoring peace and order in the area, the officials were injured and their vehicles damaged.”

The Chairman of the task force, Olayinka Egbeyemi, was quoted to have said, “Let me state categorically that the battle line has been drawn with these illegal motorcyclists and to warn various associations regulating their operations to immediately ask them to comply with the law as the government will no longer tolerate the slightest attack on any enforcement personnel forthwith.”

Egbeyemi also noted that the task force impounded over 493 motorcycles and arrested their riders for plying restricted routes around Alapere, Ketu and Mile 12 areas of the state on Monday, adding that the agency was determined to ensure that all road users in the state abide by traffic rules and regulation