4th October, 2011
Luck ran out on a member of a three-man robbery gang as he was arrested by men of the Lagos State Rapid Response Squad (RRS), at the weekend, after they have dispossessed passengers of an Abuja-bound bus of their possession. The bus took off at Ojota, Lagos, Southwest Nigeria.
The three-man gang, who was among the 12 passengers that boarded the bus with registration number DELTA XA 889 SLK from Lagos, later hijacked it and dispossessed passengers of their money and other valuables at Shapade brigde in Ogun State.
According to one of the victims, Esther Ayaba, “the operation took almost an hour as they asked the driver to pull over from the main road as we approached Shapade bridge and they ordered that all of us to lie face down.â€
She explained further that one of the robbers who is now at large, brought out a pistol and threatened to shoot the driver if he failed to adhere to his directives.
The saving grace for the armed robbery victims was Ayaba, who was allowed to hold on to her phone after they have been abandoned in the bush. She put a call to the Ojota Park, where their journey began.
The immediate response to a distress call by the Commander of the RRS, Hakeem Odumosu, led to the eventual arrest of one of the robbers, while two others escaped.
It was learnt that the arrested robber, whose name could not be ascertained as at press time, is now in the custody of the RRS at Alausa and has given useful information on the whereabouts of his colleagues.