They were reportedly caught with rifles.
The state commander of the corps, Adetunji Adeleye, disclosed this in Akure, the state capital on Sunday.
He disclosed that “the 12 suspected criminals were arrested wearing military camouflage while preparing for robbery and kidnapping operations.
“We were able to apprehend them with their rifles, camouflage they used in deceiving unsuspecting commuters on the road, and they have made lots of confessional statements.
“We also have a syndicate specialising in the robbery of motorcycles (okada) in Akure and Akoko areas. Our efforts so far are to drive home our position of zero-tolerance to all forms of criminalities and crimes in Ondo State.
“We went on patrol, and to the glory of God, we arrested a team contracted from Edo state to come and destabilize our peaceful state.
We caught them planning with weapons in the hotel where they were to take off at 3am. We also have two different groups, that specialise in stealing cars and motorbikes and we were able to dismantle them.”
Adeleye said the command had earlier deployed 1,500 of its officers and men across the 18 local government areas of the state as part of efforts to ensure that the state was free of security bridges before, during and after the festive season.
He declared that there was no hiding place for criminals in the state, even in the forest, asking the criminals to pack and leave the state
He said, ” To the grace of God, the yuletide festivities will be peaceful and I want to assure the good people of Ondo State, that all hands of all security agencies in the state which included; the Army, DSS, the Nigeria Police, Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, and Amotekun Corps are on deck to guarantee 24 hours patrol and safety of lives and property of residents and commuters in the state.”
He urged the residents of the state to ensure moderation while celebrating the yuletide and endeavour to “say something when they see something strange”