Reps ask security agencies to arrest ‘MMM’promoters November 9, 2016 Share on Facebook Tweet on Twitter Members of the House of Representatives at plenary John Ameh, Abuja The House of Representatives on Wednesday asked the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission and the Central Bank of Nigeria to immediately go after the promoters Mavrodi Mondial Moneybox, otherwise known as ‘MMM’ in Nigeria. Lawmakers strongly opposed the investment scheme, which lately gained popularity among Nigerians in the wake of the current economic recession in the country. MMM promises 30 per cent return on investment for any money put into the scheme within 30 days. The investment scheme has a Russian origin and “involves directing clients to make money available for an anonymous person with a promise of 30 per cent return within one month.” But, members described the scheme as a “scam” and warned Nigerians not to be carried away by the “mouth-watering” returns on investments. Lawmakers warned that the “trick” used by the operators was to attract as many Nigerians as possible to invest substantial amounts of money before the bubble would burst. The House directed the EFCC, security agencies and the CBN to take urgent steps to halt the scheme before many Nigerians would become victims of the scam. It also asked its Committees on Banking/Currency and Financial Crimes to investigate the activities of MMM Nigeria Scheme, “with a view to saving Nigerians participating in the scheme from you financial ruin.” The Chairman, House Committee on Telecommunications, Mr. Saheed Fijabi, had in a motion, drawn the attention of the House to the growing popularity of the scheme among Nigerians. Fijabi, an All Progressives Congress lawmaker from Oyo State, represents Ibadan-South/West Federal Constituency. “The scheme entered the Nigerian circle in 2016, capitalising on the high level of unemployment and poverty to deceive unwary Nigerians into falling prey to their antics”, Fijabi stated. He said the fact that MMM was not regulated by law or approved by the CBN as a secure business venture, made Nigerians more vulnerable.

Chrismas : Armed robbers send threat letters to Ogun community. By Patience Ogbo Residents of Anglican Road Ilupewo community in Ado- Odo Otta local government area a boundary community between Lagos and Ogun state are deserting thier homes following a spurious letter circulated in the community by suspected armed robbers. The residents in the quiet community have resorted to prayers and fasting following letters pasted on thier doors by armed robbers that they will soon attack the residents before Christmas. The letter which was written in Yoruba language and typed in capital letters was sighted by our Correspondent described the armed robbers as "Strong men of the road that owns the night" warning the residents to prepare for them as they are storming the community to steal money and other valuables they need to celebrate the coming Christmas in grand style. The letter read "Notice to Anglican Road Community. ( We are the strong man of the road) Happy Christmas and New Year in advance. We that owns the night are writing you with our whole heart that we are coming to visit you. You should prepare for us and alert your Vigilantes. We know you have a formidable vigilantes, however, if two iron touch each other,one will bow. We don't want to hear that there is nothing at home. That is why we are notifying yopu4u with our information. If you hear a knock on your door,in your interest kindly open your house or you will be wasted". The letter also had two incorrect mobile numbers belonging to the armed robbers. A landlord in the area who identified himself as Mr. Femi Martins said " We are used to pilfering in our community but we woke up on Tuesday morning to see letters pasted on our doors. About 60 houses on Anglican Road had the letters pasted on thier doors. We hurriedly called a meeting and reported the matter at the Sango police Station. Our community is very porous and people are in sober mood. As there is fear in the air. We want 24 hours patrol in our community as we believe that these hoodlums live among us and they can strike anytime". It was gathered that the police are patrolling the community but this did not stop the hoodlums as they attacked the home of the local chief despite police presence. It was also gathered that residents who usually switched off thier generating set by 11pm were forced to switch off by 9:30pm while business owners hurriedly locked the shops by 6pm. A tenant in the area who identified himself simply as Jide said " I have told my wife to relocate from the area for now. I don't want anything bad to happen to my family. The community is deserted and we are appealing to government to beef up security". When contacted, the Commissioner of Police Ogun state police command Mr. Ahmed Iliyasu assured the residents that security hasbeen beefed up in the community. He said " The command is aware of the letter and we are on top of the situation".

Chrismas : Armed robbers send threat letters to Ogun community. By Patience Ogbo Residents of Anglican Road Ilupewo community in Ado- Odo Otta local government area a boundary community between Lagos and Ogun state are deserting thier homes following a spurious letter circulated in the community by suspected armed robbers. The residents in the quiet community have resorted to prayers and fasting following letters pasted on thier doors by armed robbers that they will soon attack the residents before Christmas. The letter which was written in Yoruba language and typed in capital letters was sighted by our Correspondent described the armed robbers as "Strong men of the road that owns the night" warning the residents to prepare for them as they are storming the community to steal money and other valuables they need to celebrate the coming Christmas in grand style. The letter read "Notice to Anglican Road Community. ( We are the strong man of the road) Happy Christmas and New Year in advance. We that owns the night are writing you with our whole heart that we are coming to visit you. You should prepare for us and alert your Vigilantes. We know you have a formidable vigilantes, however, if two iron touch each other,one will bow. We don't want to hear that there is nothing at home. That is why we are notifying yopu4u with our information. If you hear a knock on your door,in your interest kindly open your house or you will be wasted". The letter also had two incorrect mobile numbers belonging to the armed robbers. A landlord in the area who identified himself as Mr. Femi Martins said " We are used to pilfering in our community but we woke up on Tuesday morning to see letters pasted on our doors. About 60 houses on Anglican Road had the letters pasted on thier doors. We hurriedly called a meeting and reported the matter at the Sango police Station. Our community is very porous and people are in sober mood. As there is fear in the air. We want 24 hours patrol in our community as we believe that these hoodlums live among us and they can strike anytime". It was gathered that the police are patrolling the community but this did not stop the hoodlums as they attacked the home of the local chief despite police presence. It was also gathered that residents who usually switched off thier generating set by 11pm were forced to switch off by 9:30pm while business owners hurriedly locked the shops by 6pm. A tenant in the area who identified himself simply as Jide said " I have told my wife to relocate from the area for now. I don't want anything bad to happen to my family. The community is deserted and we are appealing to government to beef up security". When contacted, the Commissioner of Police Ogun state police command Mr. Ahmed Iliyasu assured the residents that security hasbeen beefed up in the community. He said " The command is aware of the letter and we are on top of the situation". Attachments area

Rapists unleash terror on Ikorodu community November 6, 2016 Share on Facebook Tweet on Twitter Funlola Afeez Hanafi reports that Ibeshe; a drowsy area in Ikorodu, Lagos State, is in the throes of vicious crime For some time, communities in Ibeshe in Ikorodu area of Lagos State have not known peace. Residents sleep with their eyes open. The fear of a group, Badoo, notorious for raping women and inflicting injuries on their victims, is making them have sleepless nights. The palpable panic heightened on Thursday when a member of the infamous gang struck again. This time, a 62-year-old widow identified only as Mrs. Ogunleye, and her two children, Seun and Funlola, were the targets. The victims, currently in critical condition at the Ikorodu General Hospital, lived in Ibefun in the Owode-Ibeshe area. SUNDAY PUNCH learnt that the rapist gained access to the family’s apartment and hacked his victims with a cutlass, leaving the family in a pool of blood. Kazeem Kazeem A resident, who identified himself only as Seye, said the attack had ritual undertone, adding that the victims could only shout for help after their assailant had fled. He said “The woman’s husband died long time ago and she has been taking care of their two children alone. The boy that attacked them is a student. “It was around 7am that the woman and her children cried for help. People rushed into their residence and took them to the hospital. Their faces were covered in blood.” The PUNCH had reported series of terror unleashed by the gang on communities within Ibeshe. It will be recalled that one of the group’s members on Friday, October 21, attacked two couples in two separate houses at Oluwoye community, killing a pregnant woman and injuring others, including two kids – Rodiat, 6, and five-year-old Opeyemi. The attacker, it was learnt, gained access to one of the couple’s apartment around 2am that day through the window and killed the 30-year-old pregnant woman, Afusat Yusuf, after a failed attempt to rape her. The deceased’s husband, Kazeem, was also hacked by the assailant when he tried to engage him in a fight. The attacked sexagenarian The attacked sexagenarian Not satisfied with his dastardly acts, the assailant went to a neighbouring building and unleashed terror on another couple, 52-year-old Sunday Robert and his wife, before he fled the area. On June 5, Badoo struck at Oke Ota community, also in Ibeshe, raped and killed a 27-year-old Ghanaian, identified as Obinna. Her nine-month-old baby was rescued by residents in a pool of blood. About a month after, on July 9, the gang attacked one 60-year-old Francisca and blinded her 10-year-old daughter, Marvellous. On Saturday, July 23, one of the assailants sneaked into a Celestial Church of Christ in Itesiwaju community – a suburb of Ibese – while a vigil was ongoing and abducted an eight-year-old girl. He raped the girl to a coma but was caught later that day and set ablaze by a mob. The police had arrested a suspected member of the gang sometime in June. In the wake of Thursday’s occurrence, SUNDAY PUNCH gathered that residents went out en masse to protest against the incessant attacks. “It was some community leaders who prevailed on us to stop the protest. We are tired of these attacks. We have cried out to the Lagos State Government but no help is forthcoming. Our lives are seriously in danger. “We have vigilantes in the community, but this menace is beyond what they alone can tackle. They were on duty when the incident happened. We really need government to help us tackle members of the gang and their sponsors,” one of the protesters said. A community leader, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the most recent case was reported at the Ipakodo Police Division, adding that the Divisional Police Officer visited the hospital where the victims were admitted. A resident, who identified himself simply as Adisa, lamented the spate of attacks on residents of Ibeshe community and its environs, saying the government had not made significant moves to address the attacks. “Residents are moving out of the community because there is no solution in sight to these attacks. Those of us who do not have anywhere to run to are living in fear. The government has not come to our aid despite our outcry,” he lamented. Another resident, who spoke on condition of anonymity for fear of being hunted by the gang, said the community had petitioned the Lagos State Government without getting meaningful results. He said, “We have gone to the governor’s office to make complaints but there is no response yet. We also met with the Senior Special Assistant to Governor Akinwunmi Ambode on Community Affairs.” Commenting on the recent attack in the Ibeshe area by the notorious group, the police spokesperson in Lagos, SP Dolapo Badmos, said there was a directive to the new Divisional Police Officer in the area to arrest those behind the attacks. Badmos said, “We received the report; good enough there is no death recorded. The Commissioner of Police has directed the new DPO there to fish out the culprit and apply the concept of community policing to end the criminality.” Copyright PUNCH.

My wife’s madness forced me into crime, says father of five

*suspect: Why we target Toyota Camry cars

Juliana Francis

A father of five has told detectives attached to the Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS), Area J Police Command, Lagos State, that his wife’s madness forced him into crime.

The suspect, Mmawuike Christopher, 52, a commercial bus driver, was arrested with his partner in crime, Kazeem Ahmed 38.

The two men became friends after they met at SARS, Ikeja, where they were held for car theft. When they met, their spirits clicked.

Ahmed was arrested for the second time barely weeks after he was released from Kirikiri Prison. Ahmed was arrested the first time and remanded in prison for being in possession of a stolen car. His wife and younger brother are presently still in prison.

Christopher said that he has seen witnessed and experienced many sufferings in life, but his wife’s suffering, appeared to be the mother of all. Christopher and his wife have five children, but suddenly the woman became mentally unbalanced. Nobody could fathom the reason for her madness.

Christopher said he couldn’t stand to see his wife’s condition without breaking into tears. He started taking her from one hospital to the next. He also moved her to different churches and mosques.  Every move cost more money; every hospital, church and mosque kept collecting treatment and prayer fees without the woman getting better. Aside from paying for treatment, Christopher also had to pay for her feeding and boarding.

While battling to make life comfortable for his mentally sick wife, Christopher also had to ensure that he pays school fees for two of his kids who were in the university and for the other three in secondary school.

As the bills piled up, Christopher said that he didn’t know what else to do, than to take to crime. He started buying and selling stolen vehicles. The profit margin was amazing.

Although he had once been arrested, charged to court and remanded for buying stolen car, he didn’t changed his criminal ways after being released from Kirikiri Prison.

Today, he had once again, been arrested for buying another stolen car.  

He said: “I’m doing this because of my wife. My wife is not okay. I keep taking her to hospitals, but she’s not getting better and I just keep collecting money from me.”

The police said: “The gang specialised in removing cars from where they are parked. They target Toyota Camry cars, Tiny Light and Drop Light (Envelop). Ahmed had earlier been arrested by SARS Epe and transferred to SARS, Ikeja, for removing and stealing a car from where it was parked.

“Whenever he steals such vehicles, he would hand them over to Christopher. He is the receiver. He takes the cars to Port Harcourt to sell. Ahmed sells Toyota Camry car (Tiny Light), to Christopher for N200, 000, but the cost is N1.1m. Toyota Camry car Drop Light (Envelop) is N1.2m. but he sells it for N250, 000.”

Ahmed, a technician, married to two wives, said that he had once given one of the Toyota Camry cars (Tiny Light), which he stole from where it was parked to his second wife.

He told her it was his gift to her. He told her that he bought it for N500, 000.  The lady bought the story, hook, line and sinker. It when police arrested her that it dawned on her that her husband was a thief.

Before his present arrest by Area J Police Command detectives for removing a car parked at Awoyaya area of Ajah, on October 11, 2016, Ahmed confessed to have been just released.

He was released on September 5, 2016. He said that he went back to his old ways because he needed to raise N400, 000 to give to the lawyer that would assist in getting his wife and brother out of prison.

Recounting his exploits, Ahmed said: “I once removed two cars from Ijebu-Ode road, Epe. They were parked along the road. I used to remove parked cars at about 5am, after monitoring them for two weeks. I removed a car from Awoyaya area on October 11. I moved it to my area at Ikorodu.”

He was said to have parked the car at a mechanic workshop, waiting for Christopher to come and pick it, before they were both arrested.

Ahmed was arrested after the owner of the vehicle’s friend, saw and recognized the car it in a mechanic workshop. The man alerted his friend. Ahmed was caught.

Determined to catch Christopher, police instructed Ahmed to tell him that he had been arrested by LASTMA officials, along with the car. He was also told to tell Christopher that the LASTMA officials were demanding N10, 000 bribe before they would release him.

Police said: “Christopher left the exclusive hotel he was lodging, and armed with N10, 000, went to look for Ahmed. Ahmed was moved to Elemoro Police Station, from there he was told to call Christopher again and tell him that the LASTMA officials had released him. He told Christopher to meet him at Oshodi, in order to collect the car. Christopher refused, insisting there were too many policemen at Oshodi. They agreed to meet at Church Street, in Oshodi.”

Before Christopher got to Church Street, policemen have placed themselves in strategic positions. Some posed as residents, others as commuters. Less than an hour later, Christopher arrived in a charted motorbike. Needless to say; he walked into the waiting arms of policemen.

Police recovered a master key, specially made for Ahmed by a welder. They also recovered strings of Toyota Camry car keys. While the master key is expected to open any car door, the bunch of keys is used to attempt to start different kinds of Toyota cars.

Ahmed recounted: “My friend Femi, who is still in prison, initiated me into this crime. I didn’t know for long that Femi was stealing cars. He used to bring cars to my workshop, for me to open the doors and start them. Whenever I assisted him, he gives me N1, 500.00. One day, he was arrested and later released. I asked him why he was arrested, he told me.”

Speaking further, Ahmed said: “Yes, I went to a welder in Ikorodu to make the master key. I didn’t tell him the purpose of the master key. As for the bunch of keys, I paid N2000 for each of them.”

Asked why he targeted Toyota Camry cars, Ahmed said: “It doesn’t use sensor and sells fast in the black market.”

Ahmed, who said he was worried about his wife and brother, added: “They are prison because of me. I stole a Toyota Camry car, Tiny Light and gave it to my junior wife. I stole the car, repainted and changed it number plate. I told her I bought it for N500, 000. Police later arrested her. My brother was arrested because he was with me.”

Christopher said that after he met Ahmed at SARS Ikeja, they became friends. He was released in June 2016 and decided to pay Ahmed visits in prison.

Christopher said: “I was charged to court and remanded, but later released. I went to Kirikiri Prison to see him. He is my friend. When he was released, he came to look for me. He narrated his troubles to me. I swear to God, Ahmed knows how to steal! After he narrated his troubles, I told him that if he could get me a car, I would get him money.”

He added: “Get this right; I agreed to buy it from him knowing it was a stolen car. He didn’t use a gun to snatch it. This isn’t robbery! It’s the will of God that I’m in this situation today.”

Living double lives, only way to survive –Teenager robbery suspects

Endurance Evulukwu

Two teenage boys have told operatives of the Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS), Ikeja, Lagos State Police Command, that the only way to survive for them, was to live a double life.

Thus at daylight, they would go about their normal duties of being a commercial bus conductor and commercial motorbike rider.

But under the cover of darkness, they metamorphosed into robbers, robbing with a toy gun.

The police said that the teenagers have been terrorising residents of Agege for long. The suspects said that they used to snatch bags from people returning from work.

 Jelili Rahmond 19, warned members of the public to be especially careful when passing through Oke-Koto area of Agege and Meran-Ijaiye. He said that bag snatchers used to frequent those areas.

Speaking about his members and their operations, he said if they didn’t make enough money robbing at Agege, they would move towards Dopemu area of Akowonjo, to snatch bags, purses and mobile phones.

He was arrested alongside Babatunde, one of his partners, on September, 19, 2016, by policemen attached to Pen Cinema Police Station.

Rahmond said: “I used to ride and carry passengers with my motorbike during day time, but at night, I go out with my friends to snatch bags.”

He said that once they were heading out for operation at night, he would use his motorbike to convey Babatunde and Warakim, their leader and architect of the whole plan, to the designated venues.

Revealing the gang’s modus operandi, Rahmond said that the most important thing about the job was to be swift in everything. He said that immediately they snatch valuables from victims, they speedily leave the scene.

He further said: “We used to scare our victims with a toy gun. The toy gun belonged to Warakim. The toy gun is covered with black cellophane, to fool people. It was Warakim who introduced me into this business. I’m a motorbike rider and Warakim knew me from my street. Warakim said we could make extra money by stealing from people.”

According to him, they were returning from an operation, when police sighted them. Warakim, sharp witted, had immediately bolted at the sight of the policemen.

Rahmond said: “Usually, after operation, we would share the loot and I would drop them off at their homes.  So, we were coming back when some policemen stopped us. I guessed it was because I was smoking marijuana. The stench attracted the attention of the policemen. On sighting them, Warakim took off, leaving us to face the music.”

Babatunde, who seemed indifferent about their arrest, said he had been in the business for over three months now. He said that his specialty was in snatching mobile phones from victims.

Babatunde, who said he was a bus conductor, confessed to have taken to crime because it was more profitable and less stressful.

Babatunde said he had been working with Warakim for long. He said that he mostly made a total of N4000 to N5000 every day, after selling stolen phones to a friend at Sango-Otta in Ogun State.

He further said: “After we were arrested, police asked us too many questions and later searched us. They found bundles of stolen money, jewelry, mobile phones and toy gun on us.”

The boys were arrested when they were unable to give satisfactory explanations on how they got the items.

Babatunde said: “Since my arrested, I have resigned to fate. I know what I have done is wrong, but as a bus conductor, if I don't see a driver to work with, will I jump just into any bus? I have asked God to forgive me for my actions.”

The police said efforts are on to catch the fleeing Warakim.

Attachments area

POLICE UNCOVER RITUALISTS' DEN IN OGUN,ARREST SUSPECTS.

The police operatives attached to the  Zonal Intervention Squad, Zone 2 Command Headquarters, Onikan, Lagos have discovered  a ritualists'den,through tipped off, used by some fraudsters/rirualists to dupe innocent Nigerians and perpetriate evil acts, at Abule Ifa, Siun,in obafemi owode Local Government Area of Igun State.


The operatives,who had been on surveillance of the men of the underworld,were able to arrest the ring leaders of the syndicate-namely Taiwo Adeleke,m, 47yrs and Kayode Oseni,m, 52yrs at the village recently.


The den which is a massive ediffice, contained  several fetish structures/materials,assorted charms,figurines and shrines  and some  inscriptions that indicate names of  prominent dignitaries who have fallen victims of the antics of the suspects.

The Assistant Inspector-General of Police in charge Zone 2 command,AIG Abdulmajid Ali, led a team of senior officers including the Commissioner of Police OGUN State CP Ahmed Iliyasu,DC Operations zone 2 DCP Suleiman Balarabe,Commander of the ZIS CSP Gbenga Megbope and Commander 16 PMF SP Chika,and several teams of Anti Robbery operatives,to the scene for the on-the-spot assessment and designing  possible legal means of taking over  the dangerous den on Wednesday,

The AIG who reiterated his readiness to set all machineries in motion to tackle crimes and criminlity within the zone,commended the operatives for the good job and assured the residents of the state of effective policing which projects the Inspector-General's of Police democratic policing strategies.

AIG Abdulmajid Ali also promised that necessary legal steps will be taken to take over the structure and dislodge the syndicate while he charged the residents to be more vigilant and challenge  people who come around for such deals. He then ordered for immediate prosecution of the suspects.