The Federal Road Safety Corps arrested 1,691 individuals in five days through a nationwide enforcement sweep codenamed Operation Guduma, targeting overloading, mix-loading, fake diplomatic number plates, and other fraudulent vehicle identification violations across critical transport corridors in 11 states.

Corps Marshal Shehu Mohammed said the operation yielded 683 arrests for overloading and mix-loading and 1,003 arrests for number plate-related offences, with five suspects apprehended specifically for using fake diplomatic plates. The operation also uncovered numerous vehicles operating with dangerously unlatched containers and overloaded cargoes that significantly increased the risk of catastrophic crashes.

In a statement issued by Deputy Corps Commander and Public Education Officer Osondu Ohaeri, the FRSC described what the operation had exposed as a growing culture of impunity among road users who exploited illegal vehicle identities and flagrantly disregarded safety regulations. Mohammed said the misuse of diplomatic number plates and persistent loading violations were not merely traffic offences but direct threats to public safety and national security.

He said the FRSC would sustain its zero-tolerance approach toward violators and was planning to institutionalize Operation Guduma across major corridors nationwide while strengthening collaboration with security and law enforcement agencies to ensure offenders were apprehended and prosecuted.