Imo: Police reject N5m bribe, bust robbery syndicate, recover 450 motorcycles

By Peter Okolie

Police operatives have rejected N5 million bribe from five members of a notorious armed robbery syndicate to recover a stolen bus and 450 allegedly stolen motorcycles in Imo

The operatives also recovered N6.4 million cash and different number plates in the operation conducted by Anti-Kidnapping Unit of the Command led by ACP Oladimeji Odeyeyiwa.

Imo Police Command spokesperson, DSP Henry Okoye, disclosed this at a news briefing in Owerri, on Sunday.

According to him, the breakthrough followed a successful operation” that targeted armed robbery, attempted murder, and vehicle snatching across the state.

He paraded the suspects before newsmen on behalf of the Commissioner of Police, Mr Audu Bosso.

Okoye said the investigation that led to the recoveries and arrest of the suspects began on April 6, after a commercial shuttle bus driver, Mr Paul Ohaka, who left home for work on April 5, was declared missing.

“Subsequently, the driver was found abandoned unconscious at Irete on the Onitsha Road axis, while the vehicle had been forcefully taken by unknown assailants.

“The assailants had attacked him on April 5, assumed he was dead and fled with his vehicle,” Okoye said.

He said the victim was immediately evacuated to a hospital, where he was said to be currently receiving medical attention.

He said that detectives tracked the stolen bus to a workshop in Orlu.

“During a coordinated operation, the vehicle was recovered just as the suspects were allegedly preparing to repaint it to hide its original identity,” Okoye said.

He said that two suspects, identified as Olagoke Jelili and Godday Ezike, were apprehended at the workshop.

He said that their detention provided “the lead needed to capture three additional members of the criminal gang”.

According to the PPRO, the suspects reportedly tried to bribe the police with N5 million to escape justice.

“However, the operatives rejected the cash, upholding the command’s zero-tolerance stance on corruption,” he said.

He said that charms and other incriminating exhibits were also seized from the gang’s various hideouts.

Okoye further said that the suspects were unable to provide valid proof of ownership of the recovered motorcycles.

He said that the syndicate attempted to hide the bikes in bushes, where they were recovered.

He said: “The Commissioner of Police has ordered a full-scale prosecution of all individuals involved.

“The command remains committed to ensuring that criminal elements found no safe haven within the state,” Okoye said. (NAN)