Six armed robbers, who specialised in raping and killing
their victims were on Thursday arrested by the Oyo State Police Command in
Ogbomoso after they were traced through a mobile telephone they stole from one
of their victims.
Commissioner of Police in the state, Mohammed Katsina, said
while parading the robbers that one of them died during a gun duel with the
police while another was seriously injured.
Until their arrest, the robbers were said to be living in
different cities and only came together when they wanted to go for operations.
Katsina said investigation took his men to Ijebu-Ode, Ibadan, Ogbomoso and Oyo
where the robbers were picked up.
Katsina explained that, “The group had been terrorising Oyo
and Ogbomoso for a long time. On one occasion, they robbed a house and
gang-raped two women. While escaping with their loot after an operation on May,
28, 2015, they shot a passer-by. The gunshot alerted my men and they acted
quickly. Further investigation led us to Ijebu-Ode where the leader of the gang
was caught.
“His wife was in possession of the mobile telephone that led
us to him. He cooperated with us and led us to other gang members. In their
hide out in Ogbomoso, they opened fire on the police, leading to a gun duel. At
the end, two of them were injured and one died in hospital. We must thank the
public for their cooperation and appeal to them to volunteer information when
they notice unusual movement of bad people in their community.”
A prominent member of the gang, Fatai Balogun(28), who was
traced to Ijebu-Ode, alleged that the member that was killed during the gun
battle with the police raped and killed their victims.
He said, “I live in Ibiade in Ijebu Waterside and I sold
fairly used imported clothes in Ijebu-Ode before I joined the robbery gang
about a year ago. I was introduced to the gang by Jankaa who was killed in an
operation in Mile 12 area of Lagos State. I have participated in seven robbery
operations in Ogbomoso and Oyo town.
“I have never raped any of our female victims. One of us,
Segun, was fond of raping our victims. He was the one that was killed when
police came to arrest us. When we robbed a Ghanaian sometimes ago, we also
killed his wife. Segun said that the woman knew him so he shot her.”
Balogun added that the gang started by stealing petty
valuables before stealing a gun with which they began armed robbery operation,
raping and killing.
“We started by stealing mobile telephones and small
valuables after cutting window nets to gain access. But one day, we were coming
from an operation when we saw a night guard sleeping. We stole his double
barrel gun.
“The last operation was done in Oyo where we stole money,
mobile telephones and computers in a house. The phone was used to track us. I
was in Ijebu when the police came to my house, I knew there was no way out so I
cooperated with them,” he added.
One of the victims, who was raped in their last operation,
said they entered through the window and forcibly took money from her husband
who is a car dealer.
“They later came to my room and took money from me after
beating me. One of them also raped me. My husband alerted the police but they
escaped,” she said.
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