Operatives of the Rapid Response Squad, RRS, Lagos State Police Command, have arrested one John Godwin, a suspected car thief, who posed as a traffic official towing a Toyota Camry car in the Isheri-Oshun area of the state.
The police accosted Godwin, who was in company of three others now at large, at the Isheri-Oshun Roundabout on the LASU-Iba Road.
According to The Punch, they had stolen a Toyota Camry car with number plate, FKJ 555 CV, which was being towed by a Toyota Corolla car, when the police halted them.
When they were stopped, other members in the Corolla reportedly zoomed off and the rope which was being used in pulling the stolen vehicle cut, leading to the arrest of Godwin.
Police report reveals that the syndicate led by a spare parts dealer, one Ndubuisi, was taking the stolen vehicle to Mile 2, before it was intercepted.
According to Godwin, who claimed to be a mechanic, “I met Ndubuisi in a hotel at about 10pm. He told me a vehicle broke down in the Isheri area, and he needed men to go with him to tow it to the Apapa area.
“I saw two men with him: Ade and Ebuka. We all entered a Toyota Corolla and headed for the Isheri-Oshun area.”
Godwin added that Ndubuisi was the gang leader.
“When we got there, three of them came down from the car. Around 3.30am, they came back and told me that the vehicle would be towed. So, we started towing the Camry with the Corolla.
“We tied a rope to the Camry, linked it to the Corolla, and we began to tow. We were on the LASU – Iyana-Iba Road when we saw some RRS policemen. The rope tied to the Camry cut, but to my surprise, both Ndubuisi and Ade, who were in the Toyota Corolla, didn’t wait.
“Ebuka, who was with me in the Camry, on sighting the RRS operatives, also took to his heels. That was how I was arrested.
“I am a mechanic. I specialise in repairing Mercedez vehicles. Ndubuisi and I became friends when I was a mechanic. He buys, refurbishes and resells cars in the Mile 2 area,” Godwin confessed.
Meanwhile, when the owner of the car, Joseph Inaboya, was contacted, he said the Camry was parked in front of his house.
According to him, he was not aware when the syndicate came to tow it away.
Inaboya said, “When policemen called me that my car was recovered from thieves, I said it could not be true as it was parked in front of my house. But when I went downstairs to check the car, I could not find it.”
The Lagos State Police Public Relations Officer, SP Dolapo Badmos, while confirming the arrest, said “The case has been transferred to the Special Anti-Robbery Squad, Ikeja, while efforts are being intensified to get the fleeing members of the syndicates.
“The command would not tolerate crime in the state,” Badmos noted.
