Two robbery suspects, Chukwuemeka Ikechukwu, 22, and Tochukwu Okeke, 30, both resident in Idemili North Local Government Area of Anambra State, Southeast Nigeria, have been arrested by the police.
The suspects are part of a robbery gang which specialises in robbing members of the public of their valuables by posing like commercial bus operators on Ogidi/Nkpor/Tarzan and Umunya axis, the police said.
That system of robbery is called ‘one chance’ in the local parlance.The gang specialises in robbing victims of their phones, handbags and other portable valuables.
SP Haruna Mohammed, the Spokesman for the Police Command in Anambra State, said two firearms, 12 cellular phone sets and N290,000 lcash reasonably suspected to have been stolen from victims at gunpoint were recovered from the suspects.
Mohammed said their arrest in the early hours of September 6 followed an intelligence report.
“The suspects were part of the gang allegedly involved in series of arrmed robbery and handset snatching operating at Ogidi, Nkpor, Tarzan, Umunya, Odomodu, tollgate axis and its environs.
“Exhibits recovered in their possession include one automatic pump action, one English Menuhin pistol, one dagger, two handbags, 12 assorted handsets, one purse containing recharge cards of various denomination and one tricycle.
“Other recovered items included one locked safe containing unspecified amount of money and cash of N296,000, all reasonably suspected to have been snatched from different Victims,” he stated.
Mohammed said the case was under investigation after which suspects would be prosecuted.
He called on members of the public whose handsets and other belongings were either snatched or stolen in the aforesaid manner to report at Ogbunike Division or the SARS Comnand, Akwuzu, to claim their property.
He said those with further evidence should make them available to aid police investigation.
“It is interesting to note that one major factor responsible for the overall successes recorded by the command are the support of Anambra residents who were observed to have been very cooperative with the personnel of the security agencies,” he stated.
Mohammed urged the public to sustain the level of cooperation with the police, especially as the end of the year approaches.
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