By Ifeanyi Okolie
IN its efforts to tame the increasing wave of crime within the
Federal Capital Territory, Abuja and its adjoining states, operatives of
the Inspector General of Police Special Intelligence Response Team,
IRT, have rounded up eight suspects for various offences, which include
robbery, kidnapping and fraud. The suspects who were identified as
Benedict Otanwa, Sunday Okopi, Monday Ijiga,
Christian Akanaga, James Udobong, Salisu Bello, Abba Ayuba and Aliyu Abdulganiu, were arrested in separate operations coordinated within Abuja, Niger, Nassarawa and Kogi states by the IRT.
It was gathered that the operatives led by ACP Abba Kyari, trailed
one of the suspects, Udobong, who specialized in stealing expensive
mobile phones from dealers within the FCT. He was apprehended at the
Transcorp Hilton Hotel Abuja. Police sources disclosed that Udobong
usually approached mobile phone dealers under the pretext that he was
sent by prominent politicians lodged at the hotel to buy expensive
mobile phones and after negotiations, he would trick his victims to
Transcorp Hilton or other five star hotels within the FCT, from where
he would disappear with their phones.
Phone stealing business
Crime Alert gathered that the Police received several complaints about his activities from several of his victims and they placed security operatives at these hotels on alert. Unfortunately, Udobong showed up at Transcorp with a victim he had planned to steal mobile phones worth N196,000 from and was arrested. When Crime Alert interviewed the suspects who are currently being detained at the Force Headquarters Abuja, they confessed to the crimes and narrated their exploits.
Phone theft: James Udobong, 29, from Akwa Ibom State, who was arrested over the phone theft said: “I used to repair phones at Wuse Market before I left the place because I could not pay my shop rent. I came to Abuja in 2003. I came for the Under 17 training and when I wasn’t picked, I started repairing phones in Wuse Market. One of my friends lured me into the phone stealing business. He started by taking me to Transcorp and other five star hotels in Abuja, where we would target customers who were drunk, and steal their phones.
“My friend also taught me how to place orders for expensive mobile phones and we would tell the dealers that we were sent by a prominent politician lodged in one of the five star hotels. When we got there, I would take the dealer to a floor and show him a door believed to be that of the politician who sent me, but he wouldn’t know that the door would take me door stairs. I usually had a waiting taxi, the moment I got to the ground floor, I would leave the hotel.
“In my last operation, I brought the dealer to Transcorp and asked him to wait outside the room while I showed the phones he gave me to the politician inside the room. I entered the lift and got to the ground floor only to end up in the waiting hands of security operatives at the hotel. I was arrested and handed over to the police who recovered all the phones I stole from the dealer which were one Iphone 5c, Infix note, a blue gate tab phone and Samsung Galaxy S5, Samsung Galaxy Duos, Galaxy tab 3 valued at N196,000. I collected these phones at Banex plaza.”
Robbery and car snatching: Benedict Otanwa, 26 year-old from Benue State, a resident of New Nyanya area of Nassarawa narrated his exploits. “I am a building engineer but I joined because I was sacked by the company I worked with in Abuja. The company lost all its contracts after President Buhari came to power. I was already married and could not provide for my family but unfortunately, I met one guy known as IG. I told him about my predicament and he gave me some money.
“After a while, IG asked me to join him in his business. I asked what it was and he said I should meet him at a junction close to my house. When I got there, he brought one other guy known as Oteh, while others known as Sunday and Monday who were members of my church also showed up. Then we moved out of that side and he showed us a pharmacy and said we should go and rob it. On our way, we saw a Toyota Sienna, IG and Oteh who had guns with them went and robbed it from the owner and went and sold it. I was given N5000 after the vehicle was sold. Sincerely, poverty led me into this,” he lamented.
Car theft: A retired soldier, Salisu Bello, 39, a native of Gwoza Local Government who was arrested for stealing cars told Crime Alert that he was a car dealer. But police sources disclosed that Bello has been in the long habit of diverting Tokunbo cars whenever he was asked to deliver them to the owners. The source explained that Bello was arrested in the past where he diverted a car given to him at the Seme Border, Lagos State for delivery to the owner in Abuja and he sold it and absconded. He was eventually arrested, the vehicle was recovered while he was released.
The source added that the Police received another report in April 2016, that Bello had absconded with a Toyota Lexus saloon car belonging to a top monarch in the South West valued at N5 millon. Following the report, he was trailed to a remote village in Niger State where he was arrested. When he was interviewed he said, “I am a retired soldier, I was enlisted into the Nigeria Army on January 15, 1996 and retired in November 2012 after I sustained an injury in Operation Lafia Dole in Borno state.
“I stepped on a mine in the forest and from there, I sustained serious injuries that made me quit my job. After my retirement, I became a car dealer and usually bought cars from Benin Republic and for sale in Nigeria. But last year, I ran into trouble. Someone gave me money to buy him a car and when I got to Benin Republic, I was drugged and the money was stolen. I called the Police to assist me trace the people who stole my money but they could not.
“When I came back to Nigeria, I was arrested by the person who gave me the money and we entered an agreement that I would pay back. When I was given Lexus to deliver to the owner, I decided to sell it for N3million in Abuja and used part of it to settle the debt. I went to Minna where I was eventually arrested. I have told the Police that if given a little time, I will pay the owner of the vehicle,” he pleaded.
Robbery: Abba Ayuba, a 30-year-old, native of Ginda Zakara area of Nassarawa, who was arrested for robbing an Abuja based woman of a Toyota Camry Saloon car, a laptop, cell phones and hand bag at gun point, disclosed that he was setup by a friend who was owing him N4million. He also told Crime Alert that his friend, who he said was his schoolmate, swindled him of the said sum and when he made effort to retrieve the money from him, he gave him the car as bait.
According to him, “I didn’t rob the woman but the Police wouldn’t believe me. It was my friend who duped me of N4million that gave me the car. I didn’t check the boot until I got to my town in Nassarawa. While I was washing the car, I looked into the boot and saw a woman’s bag, laptop and two mobile phones.
Secondary school teacher
I sold the phone and the laptop. I took the car to my mother and told her that my friend gave it to me as bait for my money and she said I should keep in her compound until he comes for it. That was where the car was until the police came and arrested me. I have taken them to my friend’s house in Abuja and he wasn’t at home. He has absconded with his family.”
Kidnapping: On his part, Aliyu Abdulganiu, 26-year-old from Adavi Local Government Area of Kogi State, married with two children and who was arrested over the kidnapping of a 70-year-old man identified as the father of one Engr. Abdullahi fromOkene, told Crime Alert that he wasn’t a member of the gang who kidnapped the septuagenarian, but he was recruited by the leader who he identified as one Don Jee, to negotiate with the man’s son for ransom.
“I am not a kidnapper. I am a secondary school teacher. The leader of the kidnap gang approached me, asked me to help speak with the man’s son after he was kidnapped and when the ransom was paid I was given N150, 000. He doesn’t know how to speak English language and recruited me because he knew I know how to speak fluently.”
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Christian Akanaga, James Udobong, Salisu Bello, Abba Ayuba and Aliyu Abdulganiu, were arrested in separate operations coordinated within Abuja, Niger, Nassarawa and Kogi states by the IRT.
Phone stealing business
Crime Alert gathered that the Police received several complaints about his activities from several of his victims and they placed security operatives at these hotels on alert. Unfortunately, Udobong showed up at Transcorp with a victim he had planned to steal mobile phones worth N196,000 from and was arrested. When Crime Alert interviewed the suspects who are currently being detained at the Force Headquarters Abuja, they confessed to the crimes and narrated their exploits.
Phone theft: James Udobong, 29, from Akwa Ibom State, who was arrested over the phone theft said: “I used to repair phones at Wuse Market before I left the place because I could not pay my shop rent. I came to Abuja in 2003. I came for the Under 17 training and when I wasn’t picked, I started repairing phones in Wuse Market. One of my friends lured me into the phone stealing business. He started by taking me to Transcorp and other five star hotels in Abuja, where we would target customers who were drunk, and steal their phones.
“My friend also taught me how to place orders for expensive mobile phones and we would tell the dealers that we were sent by a prominent politician lodged in one of the five star hotels. When we got there, I would take the dealer to a floor and show him a door believed to be that of the politician who sent me, but he wouldn’t know that the door would take me door stairs. I usually had a waiting taxi, the moment I got to the ground floor, I would leave the hotel.
“In my last operation, I brought the dealer to Transcorp and asked him to wait outside the room while I showed the phones he gave me to the politician inside the room. I entered the lift and got to the ground floor only to end up in the waiting hands of security operatives at the hotel. I was arrested and handed over to the police who recovered all the phones I stole from the dealer which were one Iphone 5c, Infix note, a blue gate tab phone and Samsung Galaxy S5, Samsung Galaxy Duos, Galaxy tab 3 valued at N196,000. I collected these phones at Banex plaza.”
Robbery and car snatching: Benedict Otanwa, 26 year-old from Benue State, a resident of New Nyanya area of Nassarawa narrated his exploits. “I am a building engineer but I joined because I was sacked by the company I worked with in Abuja. The company lost all its contracts after President Buhari came to power. I was already married and could not provide for my family but unfortunately, I met one guy known as IG. I told him about my predicament and he gave me some money.
“After a while, IG asked me to join him in his business. I asked what it was and he said I should meet him at a junction close to my house. When I got there, he brought one other guy known as Oteh, while others known as Sunday and Monday who were members of my church also showed up. Then we moved out of that side and he showed us a pharmacy and said we should go and rob it. On our way, we saw a Toyota Sienna, IG and Oteh who had guns with them went and robbed it from the owner and went and sold it. I was given N5000 after the vehicle was sold. Sincerely, poverty led me into this,” he lamented.
Car theft: A retired soldier, Salisu Bello, 39, a native of Gwoza Local Government who was arrested for stealing cars told Crime Alert that he was a car dealer. But police sources disclosed that Bello has been in the long habit of diverting Tokunbo cars whenever he was asked to deliver them to the owners. The source explained that Bello was arrested in the past where he diverted a car given to him at the Seme Border, Lagos State for delivery to the owner in Abuja and he sold it and absconded. He was eventually arrested, the vehicle was recovered while he was released.
The source added that the Police received another report in April 2016, that Bello had absconded with a Toyota Lexus saloon car belonging to a top monarch in the South West valued at N5 millon. Following the report, he was trailed to a remote village in Niger State where he was arrested. When he was interviewed he said, “I am a retired soldier, I was enlisted into the Nigeria Army on January 15, 1996 and retired in November 2012 after I sustained an injury in Operation Lafia Dole in Borno state.
“I stepped on a mine in the forest and from there, I sustained serious injuries that made me quit my job. After my retirement, I became a car dealer and usually bought cars from Benin Republic and for sale in Nigeria. But last year, I ran into trouble. Someone gave me money to buy him a car and when I got to Benin Republic, I was drugged and the money was stolen. I called the Police to assist me trace the people who stole my money but they could not.
“When I came back to Nigeria, I was arrested by the person who gave me the money and we entered an agreement that I would pay back. When I was given Lexus to deliver to the owner, I decided to sell it for N3million in Abuja and used part of it to settle the debt. I went to Minna where I was eventually arrested. I have told the Police that if given a little time, I will pay the owner of the vehicle,” he pleaded.
Robbery: Abba Ayuba, a 30-year-old, native of Ginda Zakara area of Nassarawa, who was arrested for robbing an Abuja based woman of a Toyota Camry Saloon car, a laptop, cell phones and hand bag at gun point, disclosed that he was setup by a friend who was owing him N4million. He also told Crime Alert that his friend, who he said was his schoolmate, swindled him of the said sum and when he made effort to retrieve the money from him, he gave him the car as bait.
According to him, “I didn’t rob the woman but the Police wouldn’t believe me. It was my friend who duped me of N4million that gave me the car. I didn’t check the boot until I got to my town in Nassarawa. While I was washing the car, I looked into the boot and saw a woman’s bag, laptop and two mobile phones.
Secondary school teacher
I sold the phone and the laptop. I took the car to my mother and told her that my friend gave it to me as bait for my money and she said I should keep in her compound until he comes for it. That was where the car was until the police came and arrested me. I have taken them to my friend’s house in Abuja and he wasn’t at home. He has absconded with his family.”
Kidnapping: On his part, Aliyu Abdulganiu, 26-year-old from Adavi Local Government Area of Kogi State, married with two children and who was arrested over the kidnapping of a 70-year-old man identified as the father of one Engr. Abdullahi fromOkene, told Crime Alert that he wasn’t a member of the gang who kidnapped the septuagenarian, but he was recruited by the leader who he identified as one Don Jee, to negotiate with the man’s son for ransom.
“I am not a kidnapper. I am a secondary school teacher. The leader of the kidnap gang approached me, asked me to help speak with the man’s son after he was kidnapped and when the ransom was paid I was given N150, 000. He doesn’t know how to speak English language and recruited me because he knew I know how to speak fluently.”
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