By Emma Nnadozie, Crime Editor, Wahab Abdulah
& Ifeanyi Okolie lagos—THE kidnap kingpin, Chukwudubem Onwuamadike, a.k.a
Evans, who was arrested last Saturday by operatives of Inspector General of
Police Special Intelligence Response Team, IRT, for coordinating several
high-profile kidnappings, armed robbery and murder within Lagos, Edo, Abia,
Enugu and Anambra States, yesterday, revealed that his father’s decision to
disown him was the reason he took to crime.
Evans, who received millions of
dollars as ransom from his victims, during his reign as an ingenious kidnapper
in the country, told Vanguard exclusively that he was forced to drop out of
school while in Junior Secondary School Class 2, when his father, Steven
Onwuamadike, drove his mother, Chinwe, away and got married to another woman.
He must be well protected – Femi
Falana He spoke as human rights lawyer and critic, Mr Femi Falana, SAN,
yesterday, called on the Inspector- General of police, Ibrahim Idris, to ensure
that the notorious kidnap kingpin is well-protected in police custody for him
and his accomplices to face justice squarely. Commending the Police for a good
job, towards ensuring that crime, especially kidnapping is eradicated in the
country, Falana urged the Force to ensure the arrest of other accomplices,
investigate them deeply and arraign them for prosecution.
Evans In a statement, Falana said:
“The Nigeria Police Force deserves commendation for the recent arrest of a
notorious kidnap kingpin, Chukwudi Onwuamadike, a.k.a ‘Evans.’ Since he is
alleged to have named his accomplices, they should all be arrested by the Police
without any delay. ”All the members of the criminal syndicate should be charged
to court for trial. The Inspector-General of Police, Mr. Ibrahim Idris, should
ensure that the kingpin is adequately protected in custody.
“This is one suspect that should not
be shot dead while trying to escape from custody. If Evans is killed in
custody, his evidence will be destroyed to the detriment of the society as his
accomplices will continue their nefarious business of kidnapping and killing
innocent members of the public,” he stated. Driven away from home Evans in his
disclosure, yesterday, explained that his father, who is a businessman asked
him to join another business man, a spare parts dealer, also in Nnewi, who he
served for five years without settlement because the man later accused him of
stealing. This development, according to him, embarrassed his father so much
that he drove him out of his house. Evans who is a native of Akamili, Umudim
Quarters, Nnewi, Anambra State, stated that his father’s action affected him
deeply and he was forced to move into his mother’s house.
He said his mother accepted him and she also
raised money for him which he used in travelling to Lagos. While in Lagos,
Evans disclosed that he started selling diesel to luxury buses and truck drivers
at Alafia Bus-stop along Lagos-Badagry Expressway. He explained that, while he
was selling diesel, he slept in a bus garage and that was where he joined a
robbery gang. First robbery gang Vanguard gathered that Evans’ first robbery
gang specialized in attacking luxury buses plying the East – West Road, at
night. Police sources explained that
Evans was involved in several
highway robberies from which he raised enough money with which he travelled to
South Africa. A former anti-robbery police operative attached to Orile Police
Station, who pleaded anonymity, disclosed that Evans and his gang specialized
in robbing traders in luxury buses travelling at night on the road. The
ex-policeman added that Evans who had several informants around motor parks in Alafia,
Maza-Maza and Jibowu areas of Lagos State, used to obtain first hand
information on the movements of traders coming to Lagos State with huge amounts
of money from informants working at major luxury buses parks across the
country. The source disclosed that Evans and his gang would attack these buses
on the highway and dispossess the passengers of their cash and other valuables,
explaining that some of his gang members were arrested and when the police were
closing in on him, he fled the country to return a few years later and
relocated to the East. Forming another gang It was gathered that while in the
East, he formed another dangerous gang that started robbing and kidnapping
wealthy business men especially in the commercial city of Onitsha in Anambra State
and Aba in Abia State.
When his notoriety soared in criminal circles,
other robbery gangs started seeking him. That was how he became the financier
of arms and armourer for the fearless and deadly armed robbery kingpin in the
east from Nkanu in Enugu State, popularly called Ngwu Ekekere Omu, who robbed
banks all over the country until he was killed in Anambra by a military patrol
team that blocked a road on a tip-off from members of the Special anti-Robbery
Squad, SARS, in Awka. Evans Bloody robbery operation at Nsukka Afterwards, he
carried out a bloody robbery operation at the university town of Nsukka, Enugu
State, where he killed among others, a Divisional Police Officer and later shot
the SARS Commander in Enugu in the knee while they were pursuing him along
Adani/Otuocha road.
During that operation, he also burnt
down Nsukka Police Station after raiding one of the banks and as he was
escaping from the scene with his gang, they threw bundles of crisp Naira notes
in different denominations to the cheering crowd and commercial motorcyclists,
including school children who were on their way home.
Ngwu Ekere Omu died in 2009 and most of his
gang members were hunted down and eliminated by members of the Special
anti-Robbery Squad in Enugu and Anambra states. Police sources said Evans
participated actively in that deadly operation and later, after some of their
gang members including their leader were killed, he again escaped abroad. Going
into full-time kidnapping On his return, according to sources, he veered into
full time kidnapping with Lagos as his base.
He used to pose as a spare parts
dealer from South Africa with proceeds of his crime. Reports also alleged that
he participated in some operations with another notorious killer, Vampire, who
was later killed by the Police after plotting his escape from Owerri court in
Imo State, while on trial. Investigations revealed that Evans later linked up
with another notorious kidnapper called Henry Hunchman in Anambra State and
they coordinated several kidnappings.
They were later chased out of
Anambra State and they fled to Edo State. Evans told Vanguard during a chat
that he teamed up with one of his friends, Ehis, in Edo state and they started
kidnapping. He disclosed that Ehis introduced him to some of his friends known
as Benin Papa, Odionose, Okey and Igbo Papa and they coordinated several
kidnappings. He further explained that he was forced to invite his friend,
Hunchman, who he said had heavy arms and ammunition to join them in Edo State.
According to him, ‘’When Hunchman came in, we carried out two big kidnappings
that yielded N150 million, but Hunchman who owned the arms and ammunition, ran
away with the money.’’ Escapades during MD Abubakar’s era as IGP Vanguard
investigation also revealed further that Evans’ activities became so troubling
that the then Inspector -General of Police, Mohammed Abubakar, deployed one of
his key operatives,
Patrick Ejedawe, who was the
Commander of Mopol 2 Squadron Command, Lagos, to Edo State, to track him and
his members down. It was learned that Ejedawe, now an Assistant Commissioner of
Police, mopped up all members of the gang except Evans, Hunch-man and Sudo, who
fled to Ghana. Sources disclosed that betrayals in the gang aided the police in
mopping up the gang members, leading to the death of members like Benin Papa,
Odionosa, Okey, Igbo Papa and many others who were killed by the Police in gun
battles.
Our source further disclosed that
Evans, Hunch-man and Sudo eventually came back to Nigeria and were based in
Lagos, when Ejedawe was redeployed from Edo State by a new Inspector-General of
Police. At that point, Evans and his gang terrorised residents of Festac Town,
Amuwo Odofin, Ojo and Ajao Estate areas of Lagos State before he was arrested.
__Vanguard News
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