Six notorious robbers arrested in Lagos

Officials of the Inspector-General of Police (IG) Intelligence Response Team (IRT) yesterday arrested six men suspected to members of a notorious armed robbery gang terrorising Badagry and Seme areas of Lagos.

The suspects had reportedly attacked a Customs official, Mr Garba Usman on January 1 and disposed him of his 2006 Toyota Corolla. They also attacked Mr. Akubo Ibrahim, also a Customs official, on January 5 and robbed him of his Toyota Lexus 350 ‘Jeep’. Apart from their vehicles, the victims also lost other valuables.

Both incidents occurred about 0100 hours at Mowo area of Badagry, Lagos.

After the incidents were reported, the IG, Ibrahim Idris, ordered the IRT to go after the robbers.

“Following IG’s directives, massive manhunt was lunched by IRT on the armed robbers and the unrelenting follow up led to the arrest of the six suspects,” a police source said.

The suspects are identified as Tunji Adesanya (33) from Odojomo in Ondo State, who was just released from Agodi Prison, Ibadan, Oyo State; Rasaq Lawal (22), the gang leader, a native of Lanlate in Oyo State, who was also just released from Agodi Prison, Ibadan shortly before the robbery; Hammed Lawal (24) also from Lanlate in Oyo State and Olanrewaju Wasiu (29) from Ilorin, Kwara State said to be a notorious ‘Eiye Confraternity member.

Others are Kenneth Ohmai (39) from Benin in Edo State and 26-year-old Ibrahim Aliu, a native of Omuaran in Kwara State.

The suspects confessed to the robbery attacks on Usman and Ibrahim as well as several armed robbery attacks in Badagry and Seme areas of Lagos.

Police recovered one AK47 rifle, one locally-made single-barrelled pistol, one locally-made double-barrelled pistol, four AK47 rifle magazines with 84 live ammunition and one Beretta pistol magazine with 10 rounds of live 9mm ammunition from the suspects.

Efforts, according to the police, are on to arrest other fleeing members of the gang.