Police arrest robbers, recover arms
February 10, 2012 by Eniola Akinkuotu 1 Comment

Men of the Lagos State Police Command on Thursday smashed a robbery syndicate that specialised in robbing customers leaving banks.

The police engaged the robbers in a fierce gun battle around the Charley Boy Bus-Stop, off Oworonsoki Expressway, and arrested one of them.

It was gathered that about 11am on Thursday, the suspects allegedly robbed one Kolawole Bakare of N280, 000 after he had left a branch of Guaranty Trust Bank in the area.

PUNCH Metro gathered that on sighting the robbers, the policemen along with some okada riders chased after the suspects.

Bakare said, “Around 11:30am, I went to withdraw money from GTbank, Ilupeju branch and was attempting to cross the road and return to my office when two robbers approached me. The robbers, who were on an Okada, hit me in the head and collected all the money from me.

“I fell to the ground and the hoodlums shot in the air sporadically before escaping and running towards Oworonshoki Expressway.”

PUNCH Metro learnt that, the Divisional Police Officer, Ilupeju, Mr. Gbolahan Olugbemi, on receiving the information, mobilised his men and they engaged the robbers in the gun battle.

Olugbemi said, “I was on my way to a security meeting at Odi-Olowo Local Government Area with a crew of anti-robbery policemen when we heard gunshots at GTbank.

“We moved to the scene and met six armed robbers on two motorcycles who had dispossessed Bakare of his money.

“In the ensuing gunfire, one of the suspects was shot dead while one of the others three arrested was badly injured. They will be taken to the State Special Anti-Robbery Department.”

It was, however, learnt that two of the six suspects managed to escape.

Two of the suspects, Henry Atabel and Olosomo Gabkuet, who were paraded before newsmen at the Ilupeju Police Division, admitted that they robbed Bakare. But the third suspect, Seyi Nasara, said although the suspects were his friends, he denied participating in the robbery.

Atabel said, “My friends called me to follow them around GTbank but they didn’t tell me that they wanted to rob.

“It was when they brought out guns that I knew they had guns. I have followed them for operation just three times.”

A mini drama unfolded outside the station as scores of okada riders, who had gathered disowned the suspects.

Insisting that the suspects were not okada riders, they said the robbers had been dispossessing banks’ customers of their money for a while in the area.

“These suspects have been terrorising the area for quite sometime and they give us a bad name. Most times, they lay siege to banks during the daytime and dispossess customers of their money. It’s even worse on Friday because more customers visit banks,” one of the okada riders, who declined to give his name, said.

The DPO assured the residents that security had been beefed up in the area, adding that a meeting would be held with bank managers in the area.

The spokesperson for the command, Mr. Joseph Jaiyeoba, described the arrest as an accomplishment for the command.

He said, “The arrest is in tandem with the directives of the Acting Inspector-General of Police, Mr. Mohammed Abubakar.

“The items recovered from the hoodlums include, five cut-to-size double barrel guns, one dagger, a knife N250,000, a motorcycle and two expended cartridges.”

Jaieyoba urged members of the public to continue to give the police vital information that could lead to the arrest of