Bauchi police cage
car snatching gang
Ishola Michael Bauchi
The GRA Divisional Police Officer,
Vincent Igazunya addressing newsmen
during the parade.Everyday is for the thief and one day is for the
owner, so the saying goes. This was the situation
in Bauchi recently when the State Police Command in one of its swift responses to a distress call smashed a 9-man robbery gang including two females, who were alleged to have specialised in car snatching and collection of stolen cars and household items from across the country.
Parading the suspects before newsmen in Bauchi last Wednesday at the GRA Divisional Police Headquarters, the DPO of GRA division, SP Vincent Igazunya said that the police recovered from the suspects, four Honda cars including electronics and household property which, according to him, were stolen items.
Other items recovered from them were sixteen fabricated master-keys, 4 car remotes, 6 different vehicles number plates, six car-dealer’s rubber stamps, 13 sales receipt booklets , dry leaves suspected to be Indian hemp, cash of N171,495 cash, Motorola walkie-talkie, car locks, 13 different vehicle documents, charms, one computer laptop and 2 motorcycles.
According to him, “one of the cars recovered from the suspects with Reg. No BP 984 RBC belongs to one Alhaji Ibrahim Mohamed, a staff of CBN Bauchi branch which was stolen at the Plaza Hotel Bauchi on the 2nd day of this month.
The DPO further stated that the police traced the suspects to their hide-out at Federal Low-Cost Housing Estate and Turum village within the Bauchi metropolis where they were arrested while one of them was arrested in Jos.
Vincent Igazunya then gave the names of the suspects as Saidu Bala popularly known as engineer, Yahaya Bala, Yahaya Ladan, Bamiji Ajadi, Abdullahi Yusuf, Jibrin Abdullahi, Samuel Kehinde, Kabiru Bala, Hussaina Ahmed, 15 years and Fatima Ibrahim, 16 years, who were the only females among them and believed to be their girlfriends used as agents to actualise their criminal acts.
According to him, “one of the suspects known as Kabiru Bala, a notorious car snatcher in Bauchi is on the run, assuring that his men would not rest until they apprehend him.”
While fielding questions from newsmen, the suspected gang leader, Saidu Bala aka ‘Engineer’ declared that, “I am not an armed robber but an engineer at Federal Polytechnic, Bauchi, I don’t have a garage, I am on my own.” Asked what brought him to the Police station he said, “they said I am a suspect, but I am not, the car recovered from me is mine and I will prove it to them later.”
Reacting to the Police walkie-talkie found in his possession, Saidu Bala claimed that it belonged to one of his brothers who works with the PHCN, whom he said was the occupant of the house, before he recently packed in claiming that he was not in anyway linked to car snatching nor receiving of stolen cars saying “I am a clean business man doing clean business.”
Another suspect, Yahaya Abdullahi who admitted that one Honda Accord car was recovered from him, said one Alhaji Ibrahim, who is based in Minna used to supply him with stolen cars which he in turn sold and got his commission.
According to him, “I have received three cars from the said Alhaji Ibrahim in the last one month, declaring that he had realised the sum of over N300, 000 from the sale of the cars as his gain, but regretted ever being involved in such ugly business and promising that, if left off the hook this time around, he would not go back.
According to Samuel Kehinde, who denied involvement in car theft saying “I am a spray painter in Bauchi, the car recovered from my workshop at Gombe road was brought to me by a customer called Engineer to paint for him, not knowing it was a stolen car which led to my arrest. This is the first time he will bring work to my workshop; I am appealing to the police to do thorough investigations so that I can be freed because I am innocent.”
One of the females, a 16-year old Fatima Ibrahim said that she was in the house of one of the suspects when Policemen stormed the place and arrested her.
