Posted by By DIPO KEHINDE and Christopher Oji on
The police in Lagos have week saved the nation from what would have been another national embarrassment as they smashed a formidable robbery syndicate that had concluded plans to raid the premises of former Minister of Sports, Chief Alex Akinyele.
The police in Lagos have week saved the nation from what would have been another national embarrassment as they smashed a formidable robbery syndicate that had concluded plans to raid the premises of former Minister of Sports, Chief Alex Akinyele.
And the Ondo Chief, while thanking the police for foiling the plan, has charged them to fish out those who sent the robbers, promising a handsome reward.
A member of the six-man gang, Chinedu Adeze, a paint manufacturer-turned robber, told Daily Sun, in his cell at the State Criminal Investigation Department (SCID) Panti: "We were planning to raid Alex Akinyele's house.
We got information that he has cash worth about 200 million naira in his house. We were yet to strike when the police got wind of the operation through one of their informants and they arrested me."
He disclosed that the brain behind the robbery plan, Innocent, died as a result of gunshot wound he received in a shoot out with the police.
Giving a graphic account of the proposed plan for the operation, he said, "Owolabi (a.k.a. John Epe) met me with a map and photograph of Chief Alex Akinyele's house. He said he had information that a large amount of money, about N200 million was in his house and begged me to arrange for strong men that would execute the deal."
He said, "I asked him if the information was authentic and correct, he said yes. So, I started racking my brain and later remembered that Innocent is a big time crook. So, I contacted him and he was very happy."
According to him, Innocent started contacting other big guys in the underworld, because "you know to storm a minister's house is not a tea party. He contacted Isioma and we arranged to meet at Mr Bigg's on Oba Akran Avenue, Ikeja. We met and discussed how to strike and Innocent promised to procure arms and ammunition."
Adeze said, "One other question I asked John Epe and Isioma, was whether they were sure that the money was there and they said that even if the money was not there, a big man must act when we strike. I became very happy with the answer but my only fear was that if we don't get any money, Innocent may shoot Chief Akinyele and this will be a national embarrassment because I remembered vividly what the hell of embarrassment the death of Tony Ikazhobo cost Nigeria when he was killed by hard men."
On what he would have done with his share of his loot, he said that he would have gone back to paint manufacturing, adding, "I had a shop at 12, Oremeji Street, Shasha, but the state government destroyed the shop and there was no money to get another one. That was the reason I went into bad business. So, I would have used my loot profitably to open up a big paint manufacturing company where other Nigerians will be employed. My loot would have benefited the economy."
Adeze, who begged Nigerians to forgive him, also appealed to his wife, Josephine, for forgiveness. He said, "I beg you Nigerians to forgive me because it was economic hardship that made me to meet bad boys."
Continuing, he said, "My wife, Josephine, will not believe that I am in police net because she respects me as a responsible husband. She has been advising me to stay clear of bad friends. It was her advice that I should be of good behaviour. Please, my sweet heart, forgive me for this was my first and last time."
In an interview with Daily Sun, Chief Alex Akinyele said he did not have N200 million at home and "can never have it." He expressed gratitude to the police for foiling the robbery plot and to God for His protection.
"Nobody can kill anybody else who God does not want to kill. My life belongs to God and nobody can terminate it.
The former minister described the robbery suspects as beast of burden and urged the police to go further to unmask those who sent them after him.
"If the police are able to fish out those that sent the guys, I have a handsome reward for them," Akinyele said.
Meanwhile, six men suspected to be armed robbers met a dead end in Lagos Monday as their gang mounted a roadblock along the Epe-Ajah road at about 9:30 pm.
The gang never bargained for the first caller at the roadblock - a team of policemen from the Federal Special Anti-Robbery Squad (FSARS), Adeniji Adele, that was just going on routine patrol.
The encounter led to a shootout in which the six hefty suspects were killed as other members of the gang escaped in a Mercedes Benz 190 and a motorbike.
The Commissioner of Police in charge of FSARS, Mr Emmanuel Ezeozue, told Daily Sun Tuesday, that his men are on the trail of the escaped robbers, who are believed to have sustained bullet wounds.
Ezeozue added that things recovered from the bandits include one pump action rifle cut to size, two double barrel gun, four unexpended shells, eight live cartridges, one unregistered motorcycle and some charms.
The bodies of the dead men were stretched out, outside the police headquarters annex at Adeniji Adele for reporters to see.
While addressing reporters, Ezeozue said one of the robbers told the police before he died that the gang, had actually set out to rob the operators of a coldroom in Ajah, but one of them suggested that they should do a quick job before going for the real thing.
Ezeozue, who recently smashed five armed robbery gangs that raided the Habib Bank branches in Kaduna and Oshogbo, the Bank of the North in Ilorin and two other banks in Kogi and Nasarawa states, also told Daily Sun that eight members of the gangs had been charged to court.