Lagos police nab eight traffic robbers, recover hard drugs, weapons

Etim Ekpimah

The operatives of the Lagos State Police Command, between Thursday night and early hours of Friday 12th February 2021, arrested eight suspected traffic robbers in Ketu area of Lagos State.

Five of the suspects were arrested on Thursday 11th February, 2021, around 1030pm, by a team of Rapid Response Squad operatives led by the Commander, RRS, CSP Olayinka Egbeyemi around Motorways end of Ketu while the other three suspects were caught in the act by another RRS patrol team around 6am on Friday, 12th February, 2021.

The suspects are: Olawuyi Olayinka, m, 27, Mayowa Adeleke, m, 17, Fa’izu Ado, m, 25, Segun Oluwatoyin, m, 27, Haruna Shuaibu, m, 29, Amos Abayomi, ,m 24, Monday Obayemi,m, 25 and Okunlola Olawale, m, 21.

One of the suspects, Amos Abayomi, who was arrested with a machete in between traffic in the morning of Friday, 12th February, 2021, in Ketu, Lagos, said that he used to rob in traffic with a syndicate of other hoodlums, especially in the morning and at night.

This was contained in a statement from the Police Public Relations Officer, CSP Olumuyiwa Adejobi, on Monday.

He added that there were instances where motor boys working in Ajelogo Park, Ketu would use their trucks to block the highway at dawn thereby creating artificial traffic so that they can feast on motorists and commuters held in traffic.

“Abayomi, who had dispossessed a young lady of her Tecno Spak 4 phone, shortly before he was arrested, noted that traffic robbery at dawn and night was all he does for a living.

“He also disclosed that he had handed over the phones he collected to one of his colleagues, Akube (now at large) before he was arrested.

“Abayomi, an Eiye cult member, also confessed that Monday Obayemi, who was equally arrested with assorted hard drug, robs and sells hard drugs in traffic to the suspects and other criminals on a daily basis,” the PPRO said.

According to Adejobi, items recovered from the suspects were weapons, assorted charms, mobile phones, wraps of substances suspected to be cocaine and other hard drugs.

The statement noted that the Commissioner of Police, Lagos State, Hakeem Odumosu, has directed that the suspects be transferred to the State Criminal Investigation Department, Panti, Yaba for discreet Investigation and prosecution, as the command would not leave any stone unturned in getting the state rid of criminals and hoodlums.