Police arrest robbery suspects, firearms maker

YUSUF MUHAMMED

The Police stationed along Moniya area of Ibadan, the Oyo State capital, southwest Nigeria, have arrested Olalekan Abiodun, an armed robbery suspect while others escaped into the bush on sighting the policemen.

During a search of the vehicle driven by the suspected robbery gang, two cut-to-size guns carefully concealed in the vehicle were recovered.

The Special Anti-Robbery Squad in Ibadan carried out the operation which led to he arrest of other members of the gang.

The confession made by the suspect during investigations led to the arrest of other suspects at different locations in the state as well as in Ejigbo, Osun State.

One of the suspects, Yusuf Alesanmi, until the bubble burst, allegedly specialised in making guns which he sold to robbers who in turn paid him after each successful operation.

Alesanmi, according to the CP Leye Oyebade, was picked up in Ejigbo on 9 January at about 1640hrs while trying to deliver another cut-to-size single barrel gun concealed in a pair of black trousers to Abiodun Olalekan, one of the alleged arrowheads of the criminal gang.

The suspects arrested include Abiodun Olalekan, 35, Afeez Sulaiman, 32, Akin Owoeye, 20, Yusuf Alesanmi, 38, and Kabiru Adebisi, 37.

Items recovered from them include: Two locally-made cut-to-size single barrel guns, one unregistered Bajaj motorcycle, a grinding machine, one drilling machine, fabricating tools such as jigsaw, hacksaw, two hammers, mallet, three tongs and other single barrel guns at different stages of fabrication.

In another operation, an armed robbery suspect identified as Abiodun Adebayo was arrested by the Oyo state Police Command’s Ambush Squad, on 13 February at about 2240hrs along Apata/Abeokuta road while going to join other members of his gang to carry out one of their planned operations.

The suspect dressed in black over black to conceal his identity and presence in the dark during night operations.
When brought out of the commuter vehicle he boarded and a thorough search was carried out on him, a live cartridge, charms and weeds suspected to be Indian hemp were recovered from him and he was arrested immediately.

A further investigation carried out by the investigation arm of the Special Squad yielded result.

Detectives stormed the suspect’s house at Idi-Osan in Alakia area of Ibadan and recovered one locally-made shot gun, one expended cartridge, a ball pellet, a two-edged knife, a cutlass, a hammer, additional charms and assorted instruments of burglary/house breaking.