Posted by By Lanre Abiodun Sorunke,Ado Ekiti on
The police in Ekiti State have held a 17-year-old female student of a secondary school in Ado Ekiti, who was suspected to be a member of a 15-man robbery gang that robbed her father.
The police in Ekiti State have held a 17-year-old female student of a secondary school in Ado Ekiti, who was suspected to be a member of a 15-man robbery gang that robbed her father.
Besides Odunayo Adewale, another student, identified as Musa Najeem, studying Business Administration at The Polytechnic, Ibadan, was also nabbed.
Police say Najeem was preparing charms for the hoodlums even though he claimed that he was only swindling the gang members by preparing fake charms for them.
All the arrested robbery suspects were paraded by the state police commissioner, Mr. Bashiru Azeez, along with dangerous weapons such as guns and sword as well as charms recovered from them.
Parading the suspects, Mr. Azeez revealed how the 17-year-old Odunayo, who claimed to be a student of Christ The King College, in Ado Ekiti, facilitated the robbery attack on her father by a gang of four robbers that included her boyfriend.
According to the police, one Chief Okunata Patrick Ogundaisi of Idemo Street, Ado Ekiti came to the station and reported that at about 11p.m, a gang of male robbers invaded his house and carted away N46,000, his mobile phone, jewellery and his Mercedez-Benz car, marked AJ 693 ADK.
During the robbery attack, Chief Ogundaisi sustained machete cuts on his left shoulder and his stolen car was later abandoned and recovered along Ajilosun Street in Ado Ekiti.
Azeez told reporters that following police investigations, four suspects, including Odunayo who is the daughter of the victim was arrested. Other suspects arrested were Ojo Orie Charles, Wale, aka "Chairman" and Rotimi Onileowo, who is Odunayo's boyfriend.
The police boss said Rotimi confessed that Odunayo, his girlfriend, gave them vital information that made the robbery possible. But while speaking with Daily Sun, Odunayo, though confessed to being a friend to Rotimi, denied giving the gang information. She said: "It is true Rotimi is my boyfriend. We knew each other two weeks earlier before the robbery incident. But I never gave them information to facilitate the robbery. I only told him that my father is a land speculator."
But Rotimi, who also confirmed that they met just two weeks before the robbery, insisted that his girlfriend gave the gang information which they worked upon.
Also, Azeez disclosed that on October 21 and 23 at about 3.15p.m, one Mr. Abidakun Gabriel Olusola and one Mrs. Apata Opeyemi reported the theft of their cars. While Mr. Abidakun's car, a Toyota Carina marked AE 140 GED valued at N390,000, was stolen at Igbemo, where it was parked, that of Mrs. Opeyemi, a Mazda 626 station wagon marked AA 882 SSE valued at N360,000, was stolen from her compound. The police boss said following the report, his men swung into action immediately and arrested five suspects.
Those arrested were named as Sunday Peter, Fagboye Otunbosun, Peter Adeyemi, and Adebusuyi Oluborode.
Azeez, who said all the suspects would soon be charged to court, added that the two stolen vehicles had been recovered by the police.
He gave assurance that his men were now ready, more than ever before, to protect life and property, with a new security system which involved the stationing of police vehicles equipped with mobile phones at strategic places for quick response to distress calls. He gave the mobile phone numbers as 080-34884463, 080-34884464, 080-28950950 and 080-28950952.