Crime of Opportunity? A Theoretical Exploration of the Incidence of Armed Banditry in Nigeria

Abstract

The incidence of armed banditry has exacerbated the security conundrum in Nigeria to create a multidimensional security quandary. Meanwhile, the extant studies on the matter offer insubstantial theoretical explanations. This study attempts an extensive approach that captures the necessitating factors for banditry from an opportunistic standpoint. This is heralded on the presupposition that crime occurs as a result of the opportunities presented to carry it out. Therefore, this study adopts the theories of crime opportunities, such as routine activity theory, rational choice and crime pattern to expound on the incidence of armed banditry in Nigeria. It was found out that opportunities play a role in banditry; the phenomenon is concentrated in time and space; the opportunities for the menace is highly specific and that the incidence produces opportunities for other crimes. Solutions rooted in the theoretical proposition of situational crime prevention and crime prevention through environmental design theories are thence proffered.