I’m appealing to the police to release me. I went into this crime because I need to survive. I need to eat.” Those were the words of 32-yearold Gbenga Olawale, who was arrested for forging and printing fake documents. He was described as the gang leader of the forgery syndicate.
Policemen attached to Department of Criminal Intelligence and Investigation (DCII), Yaba, Lagos State, on March 1, 2016, arrested Olawale and others at 16 Kadara Street, Ebute- Metta. Other suspects are Okanlawan Abdulahi, Shakiru Atoyebi, Mojeed Ahmed, Sarah Otun , Akeem Adeyemi and Usman Olajide.
The suspects were found in possession of 5,000 copies of General Trust Insurance Company papers, 1,000 copies of Mutual Benefit Assurance papers, 1,200 copies of allocation registration papers , 2,500 copies of Kano State Internal Revenue documents, 2,000 copies of Motor Vehicle documents, 71 copies of Auto-Registration papers, six number plates and five rubber stamps.
Olawale said: “I paid a two year rent at the resident which we converted to document forgery office. My professional work is spraying of cars. I however go into this forgery when I don’t have cars to spray. I have many people who patronize the business.”
On how he got his customers, Olawale said: “It’s very easy because when one person has gotten what he wanted, he would tell another person who needs it.
That was how we started printing fake government and Insurance company documents. Those who needed them would come. We do it very well, to the extent that nobody was able to differentiate between fake and original documents.” One of the suspects, Ganiyu Otu, 40, said he was only the landlord’s son.
He denied knowing Olawale and others had turned the apartment into a forgery office. Otu said: “I’m the landlord’s son; I didn’t know they have turned the house into an office. I’m a mechanic. I went to work on the day police came to arrest me. They didn’t see me and so took my wife and children.
I went to the State Criminal Investigations Department (SCID), Panti, Yaba, because my family. I was detained there.” According to Otu, he had been seeing different people entering the compound, but he didn’t investigate their mission.
The Lagos State Commissioner of Police, Mr. Fatai Owoseni, explained that aside from the forgery syndicate, 51suspected cultists, known as ‘Awawa boys’ were arrested.
Speaking further on Awawa boys, Owoseni said the police swung into action after receiving series of reports on the activities of the cult group.
He said that it was based on this information, that Rapid Response Squad (RRS), Alausa, Ikeja, raided criminals’ hideouts in Agege, Omole and Ogba areas.
Owoseni said the group members were known by the identical marks and inscriptions on their bodies. Some Agege residents said they were relieved over the arrest of the Awawa boys.
One Bukky, said the group was nothing but a menace to the peace and security of residents. She added: “They have been living above the law in this area and no one could challenge them.
They openly display weapons and the entire Agege people are afraid of them. Their major work is stealing and targeting their rivals.
We are happy they had been arrested. Let’s see whether their activities would be curtailed.”
A staff of Agege Local Government Area, who craved anonymity, said: “Some of them have not been arrested, but there had been a semblance of peace since their arrest.
The problem is that they have a way of regrouping. They have a way of initiating their members and their number is more than those arrested. Police have done a good job, but we are expecting them to go after all the cultists!”
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