IRT smashes syndicate that drugs drivers, steal their vehicles

Juliana Francis

IGP, ADAMU

Operatives of the Inspector-General of Police (IGP) Special Intelligence Response Team (IRT), have arrested two members of a syndicate, who allegedly specialised in drugging cab drivers in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja, in order to steal their vehicles.

The syndicate came under IRT radar after it drugged a serving soldier to death, quickly buried him to conceal their crime and then stole his Peugeot 406 saloon car.

The soldier, Sergeant Richard Akaeze, was said to have been using his car as cab during his off-days to augment his salary.

When his colleagues couldn’t find him, they petitioned the IGP, who then instructed IRT unit, headed by a Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP), Abba Kyari, to find Akaeze and those behind his disappearance. The search for Akaeze, led to the arrest of Sanusi Bala and Nurudeen Ibrahim.

A police source said: “The syndicate used to lure their victims to drinking joints around the FCT, where they drug their drinks or food before leaving with their vehicles. The syndicate made a mistake when it caught sergeant Akaeze in its web and ended up giving him an overdose that eventually killed him. The suspects buried his corpse in a yet to be disclosed site. They made away with his car and phone.”

The IRT operatives, while tracking Akaeze’s stolen phone, discovered that it was being used by one of the suspects, Balla. Incidentally, Bala owns a car stand in Kaura Local Government Area of Zamfara State. He is also a worker with the local government in the state.   

The source said: “Bala confessed after his arrest that his friend, Ibrahim, based in Abuja, gave him the phone when he brought a Peugeot 406 car for him to buy. He said that he didn’t buy the car because he had no money at that time. Bala said that aside his car business and working as a clerk with a local government, that he has taken part in several car thefts with Ibrahim at the FCT, where they drugged victims before stealing their vehicles. He, however, denied taking part in the operation that led to the death of Akaeze.”

It was further gathered that Bala assisted IRT operatives in arresting Ibrahim at Abuja. Bala told the operatives that the targets of the syndicate were greedy cab drivers, who enjoy free drinks.

Bala (37), who is married with eight children, said: “I’m a civil servant. I work at the finance department of my local government as a clerk in that department. I have a friend, Nurudeen Ibrahim, who went to the same secondary school with me. He called one day, to tell me that he has a Golf 3 Saloon Car for sale. I bought it from him for N220, 000.  Three months later, he called again and asked me to come and buy a Honda Civic car for N230, 000. Five months later, he called again and sold a Peugeot 206 to me.  Last year, he called and asked me to join him in stealing cars since I was just enjoying the sales. I accepted.”

Bala said that when they got to Abuja, they bought a drug, Tributan. Disclosing the modus operandi of the syndicate, Bala said they pose as passengers to pick a cab. While in the cab, they would deliberately engage the driver in a conversation. They try to be friendly with the driver, and in the middle of the friendly chat, would invite him to a bar to share a drink with them.

Bala said: “While in the bar drinking, we would ask him to get us something we left behind in his car. When he leaves, we would drug his drink or food. He falls asleep after drinking or eating the food. We would take him in his car and dumped him at the outskirt of the town. We than disappear with his car.”

Recounting his first operation with Ibrahim, Bala said: “My first operation with Ibrahim was the stealing of a Peugeot 406 wagon. We picked the cab from Nyaya and took the driver to a popular garden in Gariki area of Abuja. We got him drugged and made away with his vehicle.  I sold the car for N320, 000 and gave my friend N160, 000.”

He said that in the second operation, they went to Dutse Alhaji, where they picked a Golf 2 saloon car after they had negotiated with the driver. They took him to a bar, where they bought him drinks and pepper soup. They drugged his pepper soup and left him sleeping in the bar. They made away with his car and sold it for N160, 000.”

Bala said that three weeks later, he discovered that Ibrahim did a solo operation. In that operation, Ibrahim stole a Peugeot 406 Saloon Car, which he later took to Bala and urged him to buy it.

Bala said: “I told him that I wasn’t interested. He took the vehicle away and sold it to someone else in Zamfara State. But before he left with the car to Zamfara, I searched it and found a small phone. I told him that I needed the phone. He gave it to me. I took the phone to Kano and gave it to my friend, Lawan. Two weeks later, Lawan called and told me that he was in Zamfara to see me.  I didn’t know that he came with policemen. When I went to see him, I was arrested.”

Nurudeen Ibrahim (42), married with two children, claimed that he joined crime because his elder brother, a  Brigadier General with the Nigeria Army, drove him out of his farm where he was working. 

He said: “I was a supervisor in his farm. He even married a wife for me and I had two children. When we started having issues, I left the farm. Since I had no means of feeding my family, I went to a friend, Abdulrasheed, who was into the business of drugging cab drivers in order to steal their vehicles. I called and informed him that I was jobless. He asked me to join him in his business. In our first operation, we stole two cars, Nissan Almeria and Opel Vetral. I was arrested after that operation. I went back to my village; but after a while, I came back and began the business of drugging cab drivers to steal their vehicles.  I stole four cars, Honda Civic, Toyota Avensis, Golf and Peugeot 206. I sold all this vehicles to my Sanusi.”

Ibrahim said that he invited Bala to join him in the business because he felt that the job would be easier if they were two.

“Whenever we have a target, who is usually a cab driver, I tell him that he might have to stop for me to buy something in a big super market. My partner would then tell the cab driver that I was very rich. He would also tell the taxi driver that I enjoy drinking beer.

“He would tell him that whenever I was drunk, I used to give cab drivers any amount of money they asked for. A greedy taxi driver would fall for this trick; he would follow us to a bar, where we would drug him and then steal his car. Those that are not greedy usually wouldn’t fall for such tricks. I had a partner that was working with me, but he died of HIV/AIDS. I had to bring in Sanusi. We stole three cars, a Toyota Avensis, a Golf 2 and Peugeot 406 Wagon. Sanusi bought all the cars and we shared the money. Later on, I went on to do three operations; I collected a Peugeot 406 saloon car from Maraba, a Mitsubishi car from Jabi and a Honda UK, from Garki areas of Abuja. I sold the Honda UK and the Mitsubishi in Kano for N320, 0000. I wasn’t the person that drugged the missing soldier. I didn’t take the Peugeot 406 Saloon car to Sanusi. Sanusi is the only person who can explain where he got the phone. I have also been a victim. There was a time I tried drugging a victim and erroneously took the drink. I got high and slept off in the bar. The cab driver, who I was supposed to rob, stole all the money in my pockets. He also stole my phones and disappeared with them.”