A gun-wielding robber, Gbenga Babatunde, 25, arrested by operatives of Rapid Response Squad (RRS) of the Lagos State Police Command, has confessed to have robbed about 35 ATM users in Alaba Rago Market, Ojo, before his arrest.
The suspected robber, who was arrested after a failed bid to rob a lady who withdrew an unspecified amount of money around 5:48 a.m. at an ATM point in Alaba Rago Market, was chased by the operatives patrolling the area.
A locally made shot gun and two life cartridges were recovered from him.
It was gathered that the suspect was not operating alone. He had an accomplice whose name was given as Samson Baba Ramadan. The 28-year-old, however, escaped after the botched operation.
Upon his arrival at the RRS’s Headquarters in Alausa, the suspect who owned up to the crime, said that his accomplice, now at large, introduced the criminal act to him.
“I have been in the crime since I met my colleague, Samson Baba Ramadan. I met him at Field Joint, Alaba, two years, and since then we have been working together,” he said.
According to him, both of them have robbed about 35 people together by lurking around the ATM point by 4:00 a.m.
“As soon as the withdrawer collects the money, we will accost him or her and collect the money and escape. The last money we collected was N40, 000. Yesterday, we collected N12, 500”.
Also recovered from the suspect were a First Bank Mastercard belonging to Iweka Christopher Uchenna and a Diamond Bank debit card owned by Nkechi Esther Idoko.
The State Police’ Spokesperson, Superintendent of Police Dolapo Badmus, who confirmed the arrest, noted that the state command would leave no stone unturned towards ensuring that suspected criminals are brought to justice.
The case has been transferred to State Criminal Investigation Department (SCID), for further investigation and prosecution.