In less than one year, the Rivers State Police Command under the watch of the Commissioner, Mr. Olatunji Disu, has recorded tremendous achievements in the fight against crime and criminality, with the highlight being the arrest of a dreaded gang who specialises in ‘One Chance’ and car snatching. Blessing Ibunge reports that these strides and many more have ensured the state and its residents thrive in a peaceful environment
Undoubtedly, the Rivers State Police Command has been recording successes in the ever-raging battle against crime and criminal elements.
In the past one year, the command has clamped down on kidnappers, armed robbers, cultists, car snatchers, serial killers troubling the state while many of the suspects, who tried to engage the police on gun battle, were fatally wounded.
Stamping Out One Chance
In this regard, the command recently, apprehended a gang of kidnappers that utilise the one-chance format to prey on unsuspecting victims. The four-person gang pick up their victims under the disguise of being passengers in a taxi. When they get on any of the flyovers, they proceed to threaten the victim with a locally made pistol and daggers before robbing them of their belongings.
The unholy gang started operating in October 2023 when the group leader, still at large, Smart Obele, met with one of the arrested suspects, Michael Gershon and sold the idea of using his vehicle to begin one-chance operations.
In his confession, Michael, 27, a native of Ikolinem-Ikot-Okon in Esemudim Local Government Area in Akwa Ibom State consented, and they sealed the agreement over beer bottles. After Obele explained the details of the operations, he assured Michael that he would get weapons ready while the latter was to ensure that his car was in good working condition. The pair then agreed to recruit other members as Obele explained that the task was a four-person job.
Obele recruited a dreaded criminal among the Rumuola axis of Port Harcourt, one Ofonime, also at large. Michael introduced the deal to a fellow he had brought to Port Harcourt from Akwa-Ibom state, Nsikak Ibanga, 26, who he described as a ‘minded guy’, indicating that he was a fearless operator. Nsikak was Michael’s primary schoolmate. He also informed his girlfriend of 8 months, Peace Paul, 22, a POS agent, that he would frequently send her money to withdraw for him.
With all set, the gang met at a bar in Rumuekini to flesh out the strategy for their onslaught. The fallout of that meeting was that the frequency of their action would be weekly, and on each day of operations, they would head out at 9 pm, and targets would be ladies only.
The next was to assign specific roles to the team members. Afonime was charged with holding one of the daggers in the passenger seat while Obele would drive the vehicle. Nsikak was to sit in the passenger seat with Afonime, and Michael would sit in the back seat with another dagger.
On the first day of their operation, the victim they picked only had a small Techno phone with buttons and no money bar her transport fare. This annoyed the gang, and she was severely beaten and thrown out of the vehicle. The phone was sold for 3,000, and this further offended them. The gang had a spat but regrouped to strategise and go after another victim.
Nsikak, who is in Police Study, was so vexed that he returns from that day’s work were less than the NGN 2,000 they had each contributed for fuel in the operational vehicle. He said he fought with Obele for this reason, but they resolved their differences and set out on another day.
The next victim, another woman, was picked up at the Presidential Hotel Bus stop, and when they got on the Waterlines flyover, they stopped and threatened to slit her throat. She surrendered her phone and handbag to Michael, who was in the backseat. He removed the money in the bag, N10,000, and they dropped her off and moved on to share the loot. They immediately went to the Presidential Hotel area, sold the phone for 55,000, and shared it and the 10,000.
The operation that saw the gang meet their Waterloo was on February 2, 2024 at about 9pm. They picked up an unsuspecting Miss Ebe Damilola Hanwah in their operational vehicle at Pleasure Park, Aba Road, Port Harcourt. As they got on the Garrison (Rebisi) flyover, they stopped and violently asked her for her belongings, which was their practice. She delayed a bit and was slapped and beaten by Michael and the non-driving members of the gang. The victim then pleaded with them to leave her phone and offered to give them some money. This got them angry, and they beat her some more and forced her to reveal the pins of her ATM cards and phone passwords.
Once they got the pins and passwords, Michael called his girlfriend, Peace, and asked her to wait for them with her POS in hand at the Obiri-Ikwerre flyover. When they reached the flyover, she handed the POS machine to them, and they sped off with the victim. They continued driving but began transferring money using the ATM cards with the POS Machine. When they exhausted the funds in the accounts associated with the ATM cards, they moved them from the account on her mobile bank app.
When they reached the transfer threshold, they drove the car to the Rumuokoro flyover and waited till 1am the following day to continue the transfer. After they had emptied her accounts to the tune of NGN1.8million, they dumped her half-conscious at the Garrison bus stop at about 3am.
The victim made a complaint to the Police when she regained consciousness and they sprang into action. Men of the C4I Strike Force commenced a specialised investigation and forensic analysis that led to the apprehension of three suspects, Michael, Nsikak and Peace, who confessed to the crime and are cooperating with the Police in apprehending the other two members of the gang.
When quizzed about the choice of flyovers for their operations, Michael stated that no one pays attention to them as no one was willing to trouble themselves with a parked vehicle on a flyover, making it conducive for them.
The Police have so far recovered one ash-coloured Mazda 323 with Reg. No ARP 231 KY with which the gang operate.
Tackling Car Snatching Syndicates
On March 27, 2024, 26 suspects were paraded at the State Police headquarters, on Moscow Road Port Harcourt, over car theft. CP Disu disclosed that the suspects are responsible for stealing of about 79 cars stolen from the state. The commissioner of police who expressed joy over the arrest of the suspects, revealed that one of the suspects, a herbalists who prepared charm for them before operation was also apprehended and is helping in investigation. It was also disclosed that 17 cars were recovered from the suspects stolen from across the state
The CP said: “For sometime now we noticed that a lot of cars have stolen and some robbed. So we tasked officers of our tactical team to investigate it. I am very happy to inform you that about 26 suspects specialised in stealing vehicles and robbing them have been arrested.
He also disclosed the suspects areas of operation to include Akpajo, Eleme Junction, Trailer Park, Eleme, Owerri, Aba and Onitsha, adding that the command greatest joy was the arrest of Chidozie Onyekwe, leader of the gang and Kelechi Uzogwe, a mechanic who specialises on removing tracker from stolen cars.
“Chidozie is the leader of persons who come into Rivers state to steal cars. Not only does he come into here, he trains personnel. He is linked to all the suspects who have been arrested at one time or the other for this same offence of stealing cars. He ensured that his men are well trained before he brought them to come and perpetrate their crime here.
“At the same time, Kelechi Uzogwe is an expert in removing trackers in vehicles. All most all the vehicles stolen from Rivers state must passed through Kelechi for him to remove the trackers. He is also a wonderful mechanic. Most of these cars stolen were taken to Anambra, Kano and some of them find their ways out of the country. The cars where taken to Mgbuka Obosi in Onitsha, where they are pieces and sell as scraps.
“In total, 79 vehicles have been linked to all these suspects paraded here. Most of the suspects met themselves while they were in the Correctional Centre, about five of them are ex-convicts. They have alot of spear keys that have been recovered from them, they also use master keys to move the vehicles away.”
Chidozie who was accused of being the gang leader of car snatching syndicate, said “But it is not true. I am not the kingpin. I am a buyer, when they give me car, I buy. When I buy it I take it to Onitsha to sell. I buy from Kelechi and one Tommy. They are the ones that normally give me cars, these cars are stollen cars”.
When asked the amount he pays for each of the car he bought from his alleged team members, Chidozie said “It depends on the car, if it is Camry tiny light, I buy N250, 000. I buy N300,000 and sell them at N430 to N450 thousands. I bought upto 15 vehicles, all the cars are from Rivers State and I sold all of them at Onitsha where they butcher it”.
Chidozie who regretted his actions, said “Is because of my sick mother, she had an accident so they took her to India for brain surgery that was what led me into it. Since then about two years now I have been in the business. My mother is back, she has been treated, I paid for the treatment and charity organisations also contributed to her treatment”.
No Longer at Ease for Kidnappers
Kidnapping syndicates are no longer at ease to perpetrate their evil in the state, as operatives of the command are closer to them than expected. A pastor whose name was not unveiled as at the time of this report, recently died in the hands of years these perpetrator after he was abducted at Abuloma axis of Port Harcourt.
A 37 years old Victor Ukwu, an indigene of Emohua Local Government Area in Rivers State, has confessed how he was part of a kidnapping gang that ended the life of the pastor out of greed to get ransom from his family members.
Ukwu who was an ex-convict, recently regained his freedom from the Port Harcourt Correctional Centre, believed that quick money is the way to go after spending years in the prison. He decided to look for his friend who he knew understands the business of quick wealth, they began the deal, thought he claimed he was just their driver in all the operations he participated in.
“I was involved in four kidnapping last year. In the last operation at Abuloma axis of Port Harcourt, one of our members mistakenly shot a kidnapped Pastor dead. We don’t get information ahead of our operations, we just pick our victims on the road. But that of the pastor, somebody brought the information before we struck. That was what happened”.
“In my first operation with them, we collected N20million for ransom, the second operation, as their driver they gave me N400, 000, the third was N200, 000, but we have not succeeded yet in this fourth operation before I was arrested. I came out of the prison in 2023. When I was freed I started following wrong friends who introduced me to kidnapping business”, he regretted.
The Commissioner of Police, Disu, has not also in all achievements failed to commend the men of the State Police Command for embracing the use of technology in crime fighting.
On car snatching, he also assured the public that the Police will continue its frequent patrols in the state and pay more attention to suspicious actions and inactions, such as vehicles parked in strange places. He also charged residents of Rivers State with reporting every unexplainable occurrence around them and every crime, even those suspected.
