4 Armed Robbery Suspects Arrested In Ibeju Lekki

MICHAEL AKINOLA

Police operatives in Lagos have arrested four suspected armed robbers at Mayfair Garden area, Awoyaya in Ibeju Lekki area of the state.

P.M.EXPRESS reports that the suspects were Rasheed Odetola (25), John Zion, (23) Damilare (20) Salami and Adeboye Dayo (25).They were arrested by the operatives of Special Anti- Robbery Squad ( SARS), attached to Lagos State Command. A locally-made pistol and one of the phones that were stolen at the scene of the robbery were recovered from the suspects.

The Policemen also recovered four unexpended cartridges from the suspected armed robbers, who have reportedly been terrorising residents of Ibeju Lekki.

The Lagos State Commissioner of Police, CP Hakeem Odumosu, who confirmed the arrest of the suspects, said that the Police will thoroughly investigate all their criminal activities.
The suspects however, claimed that though the Police recovered a pistol from them, it was not used for robbery but for land thuggery whenever they were involved in clashes against their opponents. 
Leader of the gang, Odetola, confessed that the Police actually recovered the gun and the cartridges from them. He however, claimed that they were using it as land thugs.

Odetola said, “We are not armed robbers. It is true that the gun was found with us. We are land grabbers’ thugs. We use the gun to protect ourselves against our opponents”. 
He continued, “When we were fighting the Hausa people, some of us also sustained injuries”.”Sincerely, what caused the clash is what I don’t know, I only saw three of them beating one of us and we cannot fold our arms and allow them to beat him that was why we supported him in fighting the Hausa people.”

The leader of the gang also added, “After we had been separated by some elders in the community, one of the Hausa boys started shouting that we took his phone”.
“They ran back to us where we were standing that we cannot leave. They collected our phones and money from us. Unfortunately, after searching us, the Tecno phone was recovered from one of us; that was how they started beating us again that we were armed robbers and we were later taken to Elemoro Police Station at Ajah. While at the Station, when we were searched a locally made gun was found on us.”

Adeboye said he was at home relaxing when his friends ran to him around 8pm from the site that they were chased out and they decided to come to my house to hide before going to their respective places.
He said: “After staying with me for about two hours in my house at Gbetu in Ibeju Lekki area of the State, they were  returning to their respective homes around 10pm. It was while we were going that a fight broke out between one of us and the Hausas, who also reside in the area”.
“I was only escorting them to get bike that will take them to the bus stop where they would board a bus, because it was late .””What caused the fight, I still don’t know up till now. It was in the process of stopping the fight that one of the Hausa boys stabbed me and Rasheed; immediately I was stabbed, I left the scene.”
“I don’t know anything about the fight, if I had known that that’s what was going to happened to me I won’t allow them to come to my house. I only pitied them when they said they ran for safety of their lives.”

Another suspect, Zion, also confessed that the stolen phone was found on him but claimed to have picked it on the floor during the clash between them and the commercial motorcyclists.

The 23-year old suspect said, “I am a commercial motorcyclist. That was the first time that I went with them to the site. It was Rasheed that invited us that some people were coming to fight with us”.
He also claimed, “While we were fighting, I saw a phone on the floor, I picked it and hid it in my pocket before we were eventually arrested by the Police. We are not armed robbers”. 

CP Odumosu, while speaking on the arrest of the suspects, warned criminals in all parts of the State to be ready to face the full wrath of the law or turn a new leaf.
The Police boss also said that the suspects will be properly investigated and prosecuted to serve as a deterrent to others who hide under different names to ferment trouble in the state.