Ajayi, a Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP), said the thugs were nabbed at different locations in flashpoint areas of the state, noting that they would soon be charged to court.
The Kwara State Command of the Nigeria Police Force (NPF) says 15 thugs working for different politicians in the state have been arrested in the build-up to the presidential and National Assembly elections.
Okasanmi Ajayi, Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO) of the Kwara State Police Command, made the disclosure during an interview with SaharaReporters in Ilorin, the Kwara State capital, on Friday.
Ajayi, a Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP), said the thugs were nabbed at different locations in flashpoint areas of the state, noting that they would soon be charged to court.
He, however, refused to mention the names of the thugs, but said they are "well known names working for various politicians in Kwara State".
According to Ajayi, the Kwara State Police Command has been able to identify the "flash points" mostly in Ilorin, adding that officers of the intelligence units had been deployed to man the area in order to prevent violence on Saturday.
"We have flash points and the command has been able to fully identify them and our officers have already been deployed there.
"You would agree with me that there is no way a city like this will not have flash points, but the Police have make security available in these areas. So, the Police Commissioner in the state has ordered water-tight security in this area, and the hoodlums and bad boys in all these areas have been arrested.
“Prior to today, we have been making a lot of arrests, but I can tell you that we have arrested nothing less than 15 identified and confirmed hoodlums and political thugs that would be charge to court.”
He noted that the Police in the state was seriously working in collaboration with other sister security agencies in the state to ensure that the Saturday polls were free and fair.
Okansamni also disclosed that over 4,000 officers of the Nigeria Police Force from the Kwara State Command have been deployed to work with other sister security agencies in the elections.
In order to curb violence during the polls, the Kwara Police spokesman added that the stakeholders in the electoral process had been warned to avoid all forms of trouble during and after the polls.
"We have promised all the political parties level-playing ground on Saturday, and we also expect them and all their supporters to maintain decorum," he said.