Robbery: Tech-savvy police nab four suspects in Delta

Four persons have been arrested by the Ebrumede Police Station in Uvwie council area of Delta state, with the aid of communication technology, in two separate cases of theft and robbery.

While three persons, two men and a woman, were arrested in connection with the robbery of one Emeka Okoreke, in Uyo, Akwa-Ibom state in May, the other suspect was arrested in connection to the theft of a mobile phone in Ebrumede area on June 10.

The three robbery suspects, who were being prepared for a trip back to Uyo, who identified themselves as Benjamin Eze, Oge Okoro and Jacob Otemu, were arrested in connection with the robbery of one Emeka Okereke, a former employee of a telecommunications outlet, who was reportedly sacked from his job because he lost a high-valued equipment to the robbery.

Narrating his ordeal to The Nation in Warri on Sunday evening, Okereke said he was traveling from Uyo back to Lagos, but was robbed by the suspects when he left his bag on the seat he had secured in the loading Akwa-Ibom Transport Company (AKTC) bus, to briefly buy something around.

“When I returned to my seat, in just a matter of seconds, my bag was gone. I had a telecommunications tracker, belonging to the company, my laptop, four phones, including an HTC and a Samsung phones in the bag. The police have recovered everything, save for the laptop, which I leant the person who bought that one is already on his way to the station”, Okereke narrated.

According to a reliable police source at the station, the three suspects had confessed to the crime, explaining that while Benjamin Eze and his alleged girlfriend, were the main robbers who trailed Okereke to Uyo to rob him, while Jacob Otemu is the receiver, who buys stolen properties to sell to others.

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“In this matter, the victim of these criminals has since lost his job because that tracker they took is said to be valued at more than N500,000, not to talk of the laptop and the expensive phones. Unfortunately, the man said this happened to him just a week after his wedding. From what we gathered, they sold everything to Jacob at N46,000.

“We got them arrested through tracking; we started tracking the phones, arrested those who bought the phones, who in turn led us to Jacob. Jacob brought out his accomplices. We have made a lot of arrests of suspects, especially robbers and thieves using trackers. The DPO knows how he does it”, the source said.

Similarly, the station arrested one Sam Gold, a teenager, who had stolen a phone from a hotel; Tima’s Place in Ugbolokposo area, which is the neighbourhood of Ebrumede.

Narrating the development to The Nation in Warri on Monday, the Manager of the Hotel, Mr. Abass Badmus, said the phone that was stolen belonged to the wife of the owner of the hotel, adding that he had to report the matter to the police because he wanted to protect the identity of the place as a secure hotel.

According to him, after reporting the matter to the Divisional Police Officer of the station, CSP Aniete Eyoh, he was assured that the phone would be recovered and even as surveillance would be increased in the area to ensure security.

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“I had to contact the DPO of Ebrumede Police Station on the 12th that was two days after the incident and narrated the story to him. He just told me to bring the pack of the phone. He assured me that they would recover the phone and arrest the culprits. Within a week, he just called me to tell me he was coming to arrest the thief right in my hotel. I was shocked.

“Before long he had come with his men in a van and pointed out the persons who stole the phone. I was shocked because this is someone who has frequented the hotel to charge his phone. Ten minutes later, they called me to come to the station to come and collect my phone”, Badmus said.

Meanwhile, efforts to reach the DPO of Ebrumede police station, Mr. Eyoh, were unfruitful as he was said to be out of the office. Calls to his mobile phone before filing this report were not returned.

However, the source within the station confirmed the development, adding “that was also sorted out through communication technology; tracking”.