Nigeria under siege.

The headlines are scary: Robbers arrested in Bauchi Mosque; Robbers attack Bishop, cart away valuables; South-East under siege: Robbers, kidnappers on the rampage; Robbers unleash mayhem in Nsukka, Awka; How Kidnappers Operate in Imo State. Not since the Civil War

(1967-70) has the South-East been this besieged from all fronts. Although, the situation seems to cut across the six geo-political zones, it is particularly endemic in the South-East where robbers and kidnappers are making life extremely difficult for the residents. Not only that, the hoodlums have grown more reckless as they are dangerous, having regard neither for the sacred nor reverence for anything, according to this report:

Robbers arrested in Bauchi Mosque

BAUCHI – THE Bauchi State Police Command has arrested men that specialize in stealing handsets and motorcycles in mosque.

Parading the suspects before newsmen, Bauchi State Commissioner for Police, Atiku Yusuf Kafur said that the three suspects, Nuru Shuaibu, Nuhu Isa and Sambo Wudil, were arrested while committing the offence at a mosque behind Government House at about 0300 hours by policemen on patrol.

He noted that the suspects usually pretend to go and pray while surveying the area, only for them to turn around and steal people’s handsets and motorcycles.

He explained that upon concluding investigation, the three accused persons would be charged to court to face the charges leveled against them.

He warned those engaged in such act to desist from it as his command is ready to apprehend such criminals.

Robbers attack Bishop, cart away valuables

OSOGBO — dare devil robbers have invaded the residence of the Bishop of Osogbo Diocese of the Methodist Church and carted away valuables and items worth several millions. Three of the robbers were said to have entered the house by disguising as normal visitors and requested to see the Bishop, Rt. Rev. John Adeleke Bamigboye.

The Bishop, who was in the sitting room with his son, Ife, answered them that he was the one, while the men of the underworld immediately slapped the Bishop’s son and told the Bishop that they were sent to kill him but that they would not kill him because of one or two reasons, which they failed to disclosed.

According to one of the priests of the church, Rev Zacheous Orojo, the next thing the robbers did was to take the Bishop and his son into one of the rooms inside the house and tied their hands and legs with ropes.

The robbers immediately went to the kitchen where the Bishop’s wife was preparing food and ordered her to take them to where they kept money in the house.

Orojo revealed that: “When the robbers got to the kitchen, they ordered mummy to take them to where they use to keep money in the house and took the whole money in the house which was about N110, 000.

“They also went away with all the religious books and the official Crosse of the Bishop. After that, the robbers then requested for all the car keys and went away with the official car of the Bishop (Nissan Murano Jeep), along with other car keys.

South-East under siege: Robbers, kidnappers on the rampage

By TONY EDIKE, Enugu, ANAYO OKOLI, Umuahia, CHIDI NKWOPARA, Owerri & VINCENT UJUMADU, Awka.

IT was a frightening way for residents of Enugu to start a weekend when news spread, penultimate Friday that a gang of robbers struck in the university town of Nsukka, robbing banks, and then killed a divisional police officer and bombed a police station.

This came just a few weeks after the immediate past Inspector General of Police, Mr. Mike Okiro met with police chiefs in the zone and declared the readiness of the force to bring problem of insecurity under control.

Enugu State
In Enugu in particular, crime wave has been on the increase in recent times. Apart from domestic robberies which some observers blamed on joblessness among youths, a situation that has been worsened by the recent ban on commercial motorcycle operation by most states in the zone, the state has witnessed a couple of high-profile robberies and kidnapping of both the rich, middle-class and even children for which huge sums of money were paid as ransoms.

The most celebrated kidnapping in the state was that involving the Dr. Francis Edemobi, younger brother of the Minister of Information, Professor Dora Akunyili in December last year. Although he was released four days after he was captured, the family allegedly coughed out about N5 million to secure his release. His suspected kidnappers were later apprehended along with some prominent persons who have continually denied knowledge or involvement in the act. The accused persons are currently being tried.

Investigations also revealed that there were several unreported cases of kidnapping in the state where relations of the victims paid ransom to the kidnappers without reporting to the police. Such responses to ransom demands by kidnappers had been identified as the major reason for the escalation of the inhuman trade.

The police in the state have repeatedly warned the people to desist from negotiating with kidnappers but for fear of losing such victims, their relations often ignore the security advice by entering into negotiations which usually end up in paying ransom, most times less than the amount demanded.

Apart from Enugu the state capital, some residents of Nsukka, the host community of University of Nigeria, have tasted the bitter pills of kidnapping and violent robberies. Within the first half of this year, police sources said, no fewer than 20 major kidnapping involving some wealthy businessmen from the area had been documented. But unfortunately, the police could not secure the release of the victims as they only regained their freedom after meeting the demands of their captors.

The Catholic Church in Nsukka had accused a police chief of aiding criminals in the town, but even when the said officer was redeployed, the situation has not improved. Only last week, the poor security network in the town was confirmed when a dare-devil armed robbery gang stormed the busy Enugu road with sophisticated weapons and robbed four commercial banks of millions of naira.

Robbers unleash mayhem in Nsukka, Awka - Vanguard

BY EMMA NNADOZIE, TONY EDIKE, Enugu DENNIS AGBO
IT was like a war situation in Nsukka, the host community of the University of Nigeria, yesterday, when a dare-devil gang of armed robbers attacked four commercial banks, bombed the Nsukka Urban Police Division and shot dead the Divisional Police Officer (DPO), Chief Superintendent of Police (CSP), Joe Ejitaga.

This is just as another gang of robbers killed two Ebonyi PDP officials and two cops in Anambra state.

Robbers kill 2 Ebonyi PDP officials, 2 cops in Anambra. The dare devil robbers believed to be fleeing from Awka Anambra, State, after robbing a bank, on Thursday, gunned down two Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) officials and two policemen attached to the convoy of politicians from Ebonyi state that attended the burial of father to the PDP National Vice Chairman in the South East, Olisa Metu at Nnewi.
Among those who escape death was the chairman of the House of Representatives Committee on Rural Development Mr. Paulinus Igwe who report has it at yesterday that doctors were still battling to remove the bullet lodged in his head.

Those that reportedly died on the instant are: former chairman of Ezza_West Development Centre, Moses Ugorji, a former Special Adviser to former Governor Sam Egwu on Food Security, Hon. Chukwuma Ofefe and two other security details died instantly from gunshot wounds.

Other people who also sustained serious injuries were a former Majority Leader of Ebonyi state House of Assembly, Chief Tobias Okwuru, a prominent politician from the state, Chief Christopher Ngwuta also known as GNG, among others.

The incident was said to have happened at about 3.30pm on Thursday as the convoy of Paulinus Igwe ran into the robbers at Nnobi area of Anambra state. The robbers who reportedly occupied an open black Toyota Jeep and a Nissan bus painted in Anambra State Government’s acquired ANIDS bus in yellow colours were said to have opened fire on the Ebonyi convoy and killed four persons while many were injured and nor battling to stay alive.

The Nsukka incident which occurred between 9.30 and 11.45am Friday also claimed unspecified number of casualties including security agents attached to the bank, bank officials and their customers as well as traders and passersby who were hit by stray bullets fired by the gunmen.

The entire Nsukka town was thrown into confusion as people scampered for safety on hearing the sound of the sporadic gunshots by the bandits who were armed with sophisticated weapons.

The armed robbers numbering over 20, on arrival at the popular Enugu Road where most of the commercial banks operating in the town are located, blocked the two ends of the road with their commuter bus and Hillux van thereby preventing vehicular movement from St. Theresa’s Catholic Church junction up to the Motor Park.

Having blocked the road, they started shooting into the air to scare away policemen attached to the banks as they made their way to the banks’ premises.

The Bank PHB was the first to be attacked followed by Intercontinental Bank where they surrendered the private and police security guards as well as customers and carted away bags of money.

After succeeding in the two banks with no resistance from the security men most of who were disarmed and ordered to lie face_down, they shot their way into Fidelity Bank where they looted millions of naira before moving into Zenith Bank, where the Branch Manager, Mr. Dennis Ani, was shot several times allegedly for refusing to open the strong room, as ordered by the criminals.

The DPO, who was in his uniform, was said to have visited one of the affected banks for a transaction and was coming out of the bank when he was gunned down. He was lying at the spot throughout the period of the operation which lasted for over an hour.

The police officer was rushed to Nnaji Hospital at Odenigbo area of Nsukka from where they were referred to Bishop Shanahan Hospital, but he died before they got to the hospital.

Ejitaga, who had headed the NEPA and NITEL security taskforces, was redeployed to Nsukka from Igbo_Etiti Police Division where he also served as DPO.

The Zenith Bank branch manager, Ani whose case was also said to be critical having sustained several bullet wounds, was taken to Bishop Shanahan along with other victims, but was referred to Enugu because of the severity of his injuries.

Several other victims were still being treated at Bishop Shanahan and other private hospitals in Nsukka by press time yesterday.
An eyewitness said after raiding the banks, the armed robber drove in their two vehicle to the police station shooting indiscriminately as policemen on duty abandoned their officers and fled for safety.

The police station was bombed with some explosives suspected to be dynamites leaving the entire building, files and furniture in rubbles.

The gunmen were said to have broken the cells and set all the detainees free before bombing the station.

From the station they continued shooting as they zoomed off through Adani road which leads to Onitsha in Anambra State. It was learnt that the gunmen attacked some policemen on checkpoints along the road but details of the attack were not available by press time.

However, it was gathered that a team of Policemen from State Headquarters in Enugu who raced down to Nsukka immediately news of the attack got to them succeeded in accosting the fleeing bandits at a point near Nkpologu.

Eyewitnesses said the robbers used their sophisticated weapons which unconfirmed reports said may be rocket propelled grenades (RPG) to check the advancing team of Policemen by totally demobilising their vehicles.

The leader of the Police team, a Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) was reportedly badly wounded while others fled in different directions.

It was also learnt that news of the bloody operation which spread like wild fire stopped the Deputy Senate President, Dr. Ike Ekweremadu and Senator Joy Emordi from paying their scheduled condolence visit to the hometown of the zonal leader of Peoples Democratic Party, Chief Olisa Metu who lost his father recently.

They were reportedly avoiding being caught up in the raging fire, especially at the popular ninth~mile corner, on their way to the venue of the ceremony.

The State Commissioner of Police, Mr. Mohammed Zarewa refused to comment on the incident yesterday. He told Vanguard that he was in a crucial meeting when called after the incident. He said he was in mosque when called the second time. But the State Police Public Relations Officer, Mr. Ebere Amaraizu confirmed the death of the DPO in the incident even though said he had no details.

Saturday Vanguard investigations yesterday revealed that the police within Nsukka area including those in six neighbouring local government area could not respond to distress calls sent by their colleagues in Nsukka because of shortage of manpower.

About 140 policemen were drafted from the seven divisions in the area to Enugu to maintain peace during the NLC rally that was held in the coal city yesterday. This, observers said, may have contributed to the success of the robbery.

“All police divisions in Nsukka sent at least 22 police men to Enugu to maintain peace during the NLC rally that was held yesterday and when the operation started there was no enough men to defend the masses.

The CP had no business sending up to 140 policemen to Enugu with 140 guns leaving the people of the area to defend themselves. This is very unfortunate,” a concerned resident of Nsukka told Vanguard yesterday.

Reacting to the incident, former Governorship candidate of Labour Party in Enugu State, Chief Okey Ezea said: “The operation lasted for about three hours and if Enugu had sent reinforcement from Enugu they would have arrived Nsukka within an hour. Where were all the men on numerous police checkpoints between Nsukka and Enugu?
“I think the incident at Nsukka says much about how insecure people have become in Nigeria. We expect Federal and State government to join efforts in equipping the police to protect lives and property in Nigeria.

“It is ridiculous that armed robbers can terrorize police with general purpose machine guns and grenades and the federal government has no answer to this. The State and Federal Government should earmark special funds for equipping the police and providing them with the necessary arsenal and superior firepower over and above this criminal.”

How Kidnappers Operate In Imo State - Vanguard

You have obviously been reading the accounts of how innocent citizens were picked by kidnappers in some states of Nigeria, including Imo. The hoodlums employed and are still employing all manner of tactics to perpetrate their nefarious and sordid act. No two reported cases have the same operational plan.

A story was told of how some criminals stormed a private home of a citizen in mobile police uniform. Alarmed by the additional number of policemen in the vicinity, the fakes quickly told the suspicious officers in their duty post that the state command got wind of an impending attack by armed robbers and that was why they were sent to reinforce the security in the vicinity.

In the case of 82-year old Chief Silvanus Udenkwo, the father of an Owerri based business mogul, Chief Joel Udenkwo, he was picked by hoodlums posing as officials of a mobile telecommunications company in Nigeria.

The criminals visited the old man’s Isiala, Umudi, Nkwerre local government area, seeking his assistance on how they could get a land space to mount the company’s mast in the community.

He had none to give but opted to take them to his relation that had some to spare. The young men followed the octogenarian to his kinsman’s place and thereafter offered to drive the duo to the location of the land.

They led Pa Udenkwo’s kinsman deep into the bush, scared him stiff in that bushy enclosure before driving their targeted captive away.

Pa Udenkwo remained in captivity for 12 days, but while in the custody of his captives, they managed to extract the mobile telephone number of his son from the frightened old man.

They quickly made contacts and negotiations started. A ransom of N70 million was placed on his head but the old man’s son eventually parted with a paltry N6,000 he sent through MTN recharge cards before security men commanded by the former Commissioner of Police, Mr. Innocent Ilozuoke, struck.

Chief Tony Chukwu’s aged father was moved from the Umuawuchi Owerre, Umueze 1, and Ehime Mbano local government area ancestral home into captivity. That was how his kidnap story and the trauma and anguish associated with it started. Ransom was demanded and paid by the family before he was released by his captors.

The sad thing is that the hapless old man died June 10, 2008, not long after he was released by his captors! He obviously passed through serious trauma while in captivity. His captors did not know his medical history. All they knew was that he was the father of a wealthy man.

That is the extent people can go in the quest for quick money. They never cared that the old could have died in their custody.

The case of Mrs. Ngozi Nneji had a different cast. She was returning from an evening devotion in a Catholic Parish in Owerri municipality when the hoodlums struck.

The hoodlums carefully trailed the unsuspecting, soft spoken and ever cheerful wife of the ABC Transport boss, Mr. Frank Nneji, to a safe corner, double crossed her and the kidnap story started evolving. He paid through his nose to get his lovely wife out of the devilish grip of the criminals.

When the spate of kidnapping started being a recurring decimal in Imo Sate, the Speaker of Imo State house of Assembly, Chief Goodluck Nanah Opiah, felt it was safe to relocate members of his family to Aba, the commercial nerve centre of Abia State.

This singular act resulted in the kidnap of two of his children. A traumatised Speaker paid an undisclosed ransom before his children were released by the criminals.

Not long after, the member representing Ikeduru in the State House of Assembly, Chief Sam Daddy Anyanwu, narrowly escaped a kidnap trap or possible assassination, following the arrest of an armed man that stormed his Amaimo country home, dressed in a white cassock. He impersonated a Catholic priest.

“The security men could not understand why a supposed Catholic priest, sent by his bishop, would prefer to ride on a motorcycle. Their suspicion heightened and they decided to search the strange visitor in cassock. A short gun, which he carefully hid in his cassock, was recovered”, Chief Anyanwu told Vanguard.

Although the son of the member representing Isiala Mbano in the State House of Assembly, Chief Simeon Iwunze, had earlier been picked and released on payment of ransom, there was another interesting story from another Imo lawmaker, Mr. Celestine Ngobiwu. He was kidnapped by hoodlums.

This time, the hoodlums did not quite put their acts together. Ordinarily, their captive ought to have been the one to sign the cheque, collect and deliver the ransom the hoodlums were demanding. He was however in their custody and tucked away at an undisclosed location.

The hoodlums told the lawmaker some stories and made sound revelations, which is pertinent in the present circumstance in Imo State. They claimed that they were previously armed robbers before they switched over to kidnapping.

They claimed that it was safer to be branded a kidnapper than an armed robber. They opined that some cool money could be made in the kidnap business without necessarily posing serious threat to their lives.

Thereafter, the hoodlums changed tactics. No bread winner of any family was picked up for quite a while in the state by kidnappers since the release of the Imo lawmaker.

It now appears safe to conclude that armed robbery is gradually fading away. Recently, Imo State Police Command announced that they had broken the backbone of a kidnap cartel operating in the state.

Some social misfits implicated in the sordid act were first paraded by the Inspector General of Police, Mr. Mike Okiro, before the former Imo police boss, Mr. Innocent Ilozuoke, did the same in Owerri.

The feelings around town are that if the grandmaster of the crime were actually arrested, the crime would have since stopped.

But the miscreants are still at work. They have continued to harass and intimidate members of high profile families in the state and smiling to their banks. Ginikachi, the daughter of the immediate past Deputy Governor of Imo State, Chief Ebere Udeagu, also fell victim of the hoodlums.

Confirming the sad incident to Vanguard, Chief Udeagu, tried to exhibit courage in the midst of serious distress, as he tried to narrate the story, said “she was kidnapped Thursday evening, June 19, 2008”, in Owerri.

At the time he was talking, the circumstances surrounding the kidnap was still very hazy but quickly added that the family can only get the details when she was eventually released from captivity. She eventually returned and soon after, two members of the criminal gang were arrested by the police, arraigned in court, vide suit number HOW/51C/2008, tried, convicted and sentenced to three years imprisonment by Hon. Justice Nonye Okoronkwo.

The convicted hoodlums are Emeka Junior Emeka, the son of a former member of Imo State House of Assembly, Dr. Emeka Ukaegbu, and Ogechi Ekechukwu. They were found guilty on two of the six count charges.

Justice Okoronkwo said: “Why was it necessary to guard Ginikachi Udeagu if she was an associate. There would not have been any such necessity if she was an associate and indeed a mastermind of the scheme.

I find that Ginikachi did not give her consent to her kidnap and was not involved in the plan to kidnap her. From the above finding and the admissions of the accused persons, there was a plot between the accused persons and others to kidnap Ginikachi Udeagu for the purpose of demanding and receiving ransom payment from her father, Chief Ebere Udeagu”.

Against the background of the foregoing analysis, Justice Okoronkwo said that he had no illusions that the two accused persons “conspired with others to commit the offence of kidnapping contrary to Section 364(2) of the Criminal Code and i accordingly find the first and second accused each guilty on counts one and two”.

But kidnapping is not a new phenomenon. The defunct Eastern Nigerian government included aspects of this crime in its Laws, which are applicable to Imo State today. A provision was made for conspiracy to commit felony.

This is contrary to Section 515(A) (a) of the Criminal Code Cap. 30 Vol. II Laws of Eastern Nigeria 1963 as amended by Section 3(a) of the Criminal Code amended Edict No.5 of 1974 of East Central State of Nigeria, as applicable to Imo State.

The offence of kidnapping was taken care of in Section 364(2) of the Criminal Code Cap. 30 Vol. II Laws of Eastern Nigeria 1963, as applicable in Imo State. Deprivation of liberty was seen as a serious offence and that was why Section 365 of the Criminal Code Cap. 30 Vol. II Laws of Eastern Nigeria 1963 was crafted.

Provisions were also made for conspiracy to commit misdemeanor contrary to Section 517 of the Criminal Code Cap. 30 Vol. II Laws of Eastern Nigeria 1963, as applicable to Imo Sate.

In a recent interview, the Commissioner of Police, Mr. Aloysius Okorie, affirmed that the issue of kidnapping stared him in the face as he took over the state command, even as he maintained that these criminals do not live in the moon.

“The issue of kidnapping stared me in the face as soon as I assumed duties in the Command. We have cracked some of the gangs and we are battling to crush the remnants”, Okorie said.

While reiterating the determination of the Command to fight criminals operating in the state to a standstill, Okorie also appealed to the citizenry to take the police into confidence anytime kidnappers strike, stressing that people should be patient and cooperate with the command.

The question on everybody’s lips is when this spate of kidnapping, armed robbery and other serious crimes in Imo State will stop.

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Last Updated on Monday, 21 September 2009 13:13
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