The Osun State Police Command on Monday said it arrested 20 suspects between November 2023 and February 2024 over alleged cable theft, armed robbery, kidnapping and membership of a secret society.
Hope Okafor, the Deputy Commissioner of Police in charge of Administration, paraded the suspects in Osogbo.
Okafor said six of the suspects were arrested for armed robbery
She said: “They also kidnapped one of their victims and altered IMEIs of stolen phones to evade police tracking.”
Okafor said the six suspects are: Seyi Ojo, 33; Kamorudeen Quadri, 32; Ogbemudia Sunday, 48; Fatai Toheeb, 22; David Adebayo, 43; and David Aderemi, 30.
She said Seyi Ojo and Kamorudeen Quadri were part of a gang that robbed a family at Ijebu Jesa on November 31, 2023 and after their arrest investigations revealed that they also took part in robbing and kidnapping one Sarah Olomolatan of Araromi Street, Erin-Ijesa on December 7, 2023.
The police chief said that investigation further revealed that one Sunday Ogbemudia received two vehicles, a Toyota Corolla and Highlander, from the suspects, while the duo of David Adebayo and David Aderemi helped the suspects to change the IMEIs of the stolen phones.
Okafor said that one Fatai Toheeb was also arrested after both Seyi Ojo and Kamorudeen Quadri fingered him for complicity in the robbery and kidnapping of Olomolatan.
Okafor said that one Ayodele Kehinde, 39, who was arrested on November 31 at Yidi Area, Ilesa for snatching motorcycles at gunpoint, equally implicated Ojo as one of his gang members.
She said: “He confessed to the fact that himself, Seyi Ojo and two others, who are currently at large, were the ones terrorising the area and that they had snatched four motorcycles, which they sold to one Olalekan Musiliu.”
The DCP said that four other suspects were also arrested for being members of Eiye Confraternity, while another suspect was arrested for stealing electricity cables of an ongoing building project in Osogbo.
She said that a robbery suspect shot while his gang members were attempting to rob the Steel Rolling Company, Osogbo was also arrested while seeking medial attention to treat the injury sustained from the gunshot.
“On Wednesday at about 1am, a team of Police Anti-kidnapping operatives intercepted a four-man gang of suspected car thieves on Osunjela-Ilesa Road while they were enroute to Kabba, Kogi State to sell the stolen cars,” the DCP.
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She said that preliminary interrogation revealed that the suspects operated under the guise of being gearbox mechanics and subsequently steal their unsuspecting customers’ cars.
Okafor said that four cars were recovered from the suspects and called on residents whose property was among those recovered to come to the command, with evidence to claim them.
She said that all the suspects would be charged to court after the completion of investigation.
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