29th February, 2012
The police at Apapa Wharf, Lagos, southwest Nigeria, recently arrested three robbery suspects, who have been stealing goods from ships at the port.
P.M.NEWS learnt that the suspected ship hijackers were transferred to Special Anti- Robbery Squad, SARS, Ikeja.
Speaking with P.M.NEWS, one of the suspects who claimed to be from Ondo State and reside at Oyewole Olodi, Apapa, Ajegunle, said: “We do bunkering and rob with guns; I was arrested with guns in a nylon bag. The guns are owned by Singapore(one of the suspects) and he brought them to the boat at Ilado, Liverpool, Apapa waterside. I paddle the boat and others just point the guns at the victims who abandon their goods especially jerry cans of petrol and escape.
“The first one we did gave us 18 kegs of 50-litre petrol and we sold them for 4,000 each. I went twice and on first day I got N75,000. We were arrested by Oodua Peoples Congress, OPC, members who after beating us called the police to arrest us.”
Another suspect confessed: “I reside at Apena Street, Ajegunle Apapa, Lagos.
“I am 31 years old and I am a worker in the Nigeria Ports Authority.
Some people complained to me that they don’t have jobs and I told them that I don’t manufacture jobs but that I can make something available for them to eat.
“At a meeting, we discussed how to rob people of their belongings on the sea at gun points.
“After robbing people of their belongings, we move to waterside, where we sell the goods and share the money. My share is N5,000.
“I have gone with them two times and I have realised N10,000 with petty cash.
“I have also broken into people’s shops, and stolen clothes worth N10,000. I was later arrested and charged to court and later sent to Kirikiri prison for one year and six months. I broke into another person’s shop, where I stole weavon and baby care materials. I also broke into another peron’s shop at Alaba market where I stole shirts and sold them for N5,000.
The other suspect said: “I am 34 from Abia State. I’m a tailor by profession and I reside at old Idewu, Olodi Apapa, Lagos.
“We took a boat from GNJ Ilaje quarter and left for operation that very day. We didn’t see any thing and we came back. After we came down from the boat, one of us went to drop the gun near a woman drying fish. We left and after a while my colleague came back and when the woman saw him, she raised an alarm, alleging that so many things have been missing in the area. We left the fish seller, not knowing that she had already told some area boys to go after us. They called us and we started running but by the time we looked back we did not see our colleague, not knowing that he had gone back and got trapped by the area boys. When we tried to trace our colleague, we were caught and beaten up by the area boys who later handed us over to the police.
“When we go for bunkering, some times we get 15 kegs of 50 litres of petrol and sometimes it could be diesel and after a successful operation I get N7,000 and this is my second time of going for the operation.
“We were transferred to SARS by men of Tolu Police Station,” he concluded.
—Oluwole Adeboye/Dedeigbo Ayodeji