Lagos—The Lagos State Commissioner of Police, Mr Kayode
Aderanti, weekend, said that the command had clue of who the robbers that
stormed a second generation bank last Thursday, killing three policemen and a
teenager, were, assuring that it would soon round them up.
This is just as the Inspector-General of Police, Suleiman
Abbah, has given matching orders to the Police in Lagos to re-strategise, in
order to ensure that armed robbers do not unleash terror again in the state.
Investigation as gathered had begun by joint crack
detectives from the Special Anti Robbery Squad, SARS and those from the newly
instituted Tactical Operation Unit. The operatives as gathered would also spread their dragnet
to neighbouring Benin Republic where the fleeing armed men were suspected to
have taken refuge.
Impeccable police sources hinted that part of the on going
investigation included the monitoring of the video footage of the robbery
operation recorded by an onlooker.
Aderanti who was at the scene of the robbery incident,
described the death of his men as unfortunate, adding that they (policemen )
were not even attached to the bank where the gunmen stormed but acted gallantly
to prevent the hoodlums from carrying out their devilish act.
Also reacting to the
development, Force Public Relations Officer, Ag. Commissioner of Police,
Emmanuel Ojukwu told Vanguard; ‘’It’s a terrible development. We will see to
the end of it. We must get them. You should know that for a long time we have
not had that kind of bank robbery in Lagos State. That is why the Inspector-General
of Police, Suleiman Abbah, has given the command matching orders to
re-strategise in order to ensure that it does not occur again.’’ Kidnap resurfaces in Lekki.
However , investigation revealed that the robbery incident
was not the first time hoodlums would be terrorising residents of the high brow
area. Before their invasion last Thursday, it was revealed that
kidnappers had been on the prowl in Lekki metropolis, with bank staff and
construction firm workers as their targets.
The kidnappers as gathered, usually struck when unsuspecting
bank staff would be leaving for their places of work.
Recently, a female bank staff was reportedly abducted while
on her way to work but was released after payment of an unspecified amount as
ransom. Another female of same bank was said to have been at the verge of being
abducted last week in same metropolis but for the intervention of his
colleagues. The female bank staff(names withheld ) was reportedly waiting for
the staff bus when the abductors sprang out from nowhere to forcefully drag her
into their waiting van. But just at the same time, the staff bus arrived and
her colleagues reportedly raised an alarm which forced the kidnappers to
abandon her and zoomed off in their operational vehicle.
But such testimony could not be said of Mr Emmanuel Nduka, a
civil engineer whose whereabouts is yet unknown, following his disappearance
since February 2, 2015.
His wife , Evelyn who is yet to come to terms with the
reality of her husband’s disappearance, explained how he left their Happyland
estate in Olokunla area of Lekki, home
penultimate Monday , to see an unknown caller who reportedly invited him over.
According to the mother of five : “We were together in my
shop where I sell provisions and food stuffs; when he had a call and told me
that he was going to Abijo to see someone. Not suspecting anything sinister, I
didn’t ask who he was going to meet at Abijo.
“He drove himself in his Honda Odyssey car with Registration
number: QZ 143 EKY about 8pm. About 20 minutes later, he called me to say that
he has bought the kerosene I asked him to buy and has gotten to the place
adding that he would be coming in no distant time. Having waited for a long
while and he wasn’t forthcoming, I had to call him only to discover that his
phone was switched off and has remained so till now.
“I couldn’t just fathom exactly what was wrong! I became worried
what might have happened to him and immediately informed the young brother
while I waited till the following morning. Not seeing him, I had to trace the
house of one of his friends he usually visited at Abijo. To my surprise, the
friend told me he didn’t come to his place. I eventually had to report the
matter at the Divisional Headquarters at Ajiwe-Ajah”, she stated.
- No cause for alarm- Police
Following cases of kidnap and last Thursday’s bank robbery ,
residents of the high brow area are gripped with fear of who could be the next
victim.
But spokesman for the Lagos State Police Command, Kenneth
Nwosu, a Deputy Superintendent of Police, said there was no cause for alarm as
the command had increased visibility along that corridor.
According to him: “The command is alert to its
responsibility. It was because of the anticipation of all this that the CP
formed a tactical operation unit to interface with the banks. We held meetings
with the banks and we have been having some collaboration with them.
”We anticipated that since banks are moving to this corridor, definitely hoodlums will want to torment and because we acted proactive measures that is why we have been able to keep it within this barest minimum."
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