Tuesday, January 14, 2014

Airport robberies: Five arrested for killing 3 policemen, carting millions



The Lagos State Police Command has arrested the last five members of the armed robbery gang which twice daringly stormed the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, killing two policemen and making away with millions of naira belonging to operators of Bureau De Change.

The gang members who were paraded before journalists today (Monday) by the Commissioner of Police, Umar Manko, were identified as Samuel Maiyegun, a graduate of Building and Quantity Surveying from Moshood Abiola Polytechnic, Abeokuta, Ogun State. Samuel Maiyegun is popularly known as Asiwaju. There are also Abiosun Adegeye, Ezekiel Anthony, Ibraheem Sado and Femi Osiyelu 
According to the police, the gang on February first and March 13 2013 invaded the Murtala Mohammed International Airports, carting away local and foreign currencies estimated to be over N100 million. 

Umar Manko disclosed that the suspects were arrested after a tip-off from “a reliable source.”  

It was gathered that Maiyegun and other gang members over the weekend were arrested in Ikorodu area of the state, while planning for another robbery operation.

Maiyegun was however during the weekend, arrested by SARS operatives at the Ikorodu based on a tip off from the " reliable source "

Manko said:  " On that fateful day, we received a tip off at about 2am that the notorious armed robber had left his hideout in Ijebu-Ode, Ogun State for Ikorodu where they were planning a big operation the next day.
"We recovered one General Purpose Machine Gun (GPMP), one Ak47 rifle with serial number 533124, two double barrel locally made pistols, 10 GPMG and eight AK47 magazines fully loaded respectively and 32 live cartridges"

Manko added: "During interrogation, Mayegun confessed to the robberies at the airport where a Bureau De Change was robbed and money running into millions were carted away and he admitted to getting N45million as his share.
"He had recruited other gang members to continue his nefarious acts as because he thought the police have forgotten him being the only member of the airport robbery gang that eluded arrest."
Maiyegun was also said to have confessed to have participating in many robbery operations in Lagos and other states, including a deadly bank robbery in Kwara State.
Maiyegun told journalists that he was planning for another robbery operation to make enough money, so as   to leave armed robbery for good, when he was arrested. 

No comments: