Some car-snatchers, abductors and cyber fraudsters terrorizing some parts of Rivers State who recently met their waterloo were Tuesday paraded by the Rivers State Police Command.
Luck ran out on the bandits when police officers from the Inspector-General of Police (IGP) Monitoring Unit attached to the Rivers State Police Command under the command of Deputy Commissioner of Police, DCP Benneth Igwe swooped on the criminals in their various hideouts.
In a press briefing preceding the parading of the criminals before newsmen at the Rivers State Police headquarters, Moscow Road, Port Harcourt, CP Ahmed said: “Today, I have the singular honour to showcase some of the breathtaking achievements recorded by the Unit, to wit: Arrest of a car snatching syndicate and recovery of assorted cars: Men of the IGP Monitoring Unit while acting on credible information burst a gang of car snatching syndicate, that specializes in snatching cars in Port-Harcourt and its environs. Following a tip-off, the Team on 18/7/2018 arrested one Barisuka Biira aka JJ ‘m’, 32yrs, the leader of the gang who on interrogation confessed and led the police to where Wisdom Biira ‘m’, Smart ‘m’, Sunny Agbo ‘m’, Adamu Yunusa ‘m’ Receiver and Ignatius Ogbenu ‘m’ aka IG were arrested at Obinze in Owerri, Imo State. Their further confession led the Police to Lagos where four Hummer Buses and Two Hilux Vans were recovered. They are still helping us in investigation as efforts are at advance stage to recover more snatched vehicles and their operational weapons.
“Again on 18/9/2018 at about 04000hrs, men of IGP Monitoring Unit, in a sting operation led by the Commander, DCP Benneth Igweh, stormed a criminal hideout in a bush close to Royal Park Estate, Eneka, Port-Harcourt, where a gang of kidnappers were hibernating. However, on sighting the Police, they opened fire, and in a return fire one of them, later identified as Casmir Nwagwu ‘m’ aka Wowo was fatally wounded including the leader of the gang, one Chimeze Nwagwu ‘m’ aka Gasak, 30 years, was arrested as others escaped with gunshot wounds. Operatives extended investigation to Imo State where one of the fleeing suspects, Morgan Alex, ‘m’ was arrested after a gun battle with operatives. Exhibits recovered from them include: Three English Pump Action, One SMG Rifle, One Jericho Pistol, Sixty three (63) live ammunition, Sixteen rounds of 9mm, twelve (12) rounds of 7.62mm. Investigation is ongoing as the suspect is still making useful confessions and efforts on to arrest other members of the dreaded gang”.
“In another development, the IGP Monitoring Team, through technical intelligence, arrested a gang of Cyber criminals who specializes in generating fake bank alert to their unsuspecting victims in whose account, the fake alert will be falsely credited thereupon, they will take delivery of the goods worth millions of naira. The suspects are Gordons Elenwo ‘m’ and Boniface Wisdom ‘m’. The suspects have been in the business until luck ran out on them. So far, five plasma televisions have been recovered from their receivers namely: Onyekachi Umeononihu, Elijah Isaac ‘m’, Uchenna Umesuohihu, ‘m’. The suspects are helping the police and they will be charged to Court as soon as investigation is over”.
The Commissioner of Police further said that the IGP Monitoring Unit rescued a kidnap victim, one Sydney Onoh who was held captive in a swampy farmland in Mgbuoba, adding that one of the kidnappers died in a gun battle with the police while others fled with gunshot wounds.
This was as he said that the IGP Monitoring Unit acting on a tip-off, arrested one Joseph Williamson, who was among a gang of four armed robbers who had robbed a supermarket at No. 7 Rumuoparaeli Street in Old GRA, Port-Harcourt, saying that one locally-made revolver pistol was recovered from the suspect, who, according to him, made “useful” confessions.
He said that efforts were on to arrest other members of the gang and thanked the people of the state for their support and co-operation with the police, assuring them that the State Command would keep Rivers State safe in the months leading to Christmas and ahead of next year’s general elections.
Speaking with journalists, how they snatched cars leader of the car-snatching syndicate, Barisuka Biira, from Khana Local Government Area of Rivers State, said that they would go to a bus transport company and pay money on the false pretence that they were hiring a bus and while on the way to a supposed location with the bus driver, they would then physically overpower him and put him out of the bus along a roadside and would speed off with the bus with its original documents in their possession.
He said that they would then sell the bus to a buyer in Lagos through an intermediary who lives in Port Harcourt, one Adamu Yunusa, who told also newsmen that he is a car dealer and had bought two Hummer buses for his boss in Lagos for N4.5 million and N3.2 million respectively from the car-snatchers, without knowing that the vehicles were stolen by members of the car-snatching syndicate, who he said came with original documents to show proof of ownership.
The arrested criminals were later taken away from the premises of the Rivers State Police Commander Headquarters.###
