The operative of the rapid response squad (RRS) Lagos State Police Command last week arrested the leader of a robbery gang, identified as Sunday John alongside three other members of the gang. The gang leader narrated how his member robbed and raped their victims around Charity Bus Stop in Oshodi area of Lagos State.
The 27-year-old Akwa Ibom State-born suspect, however, claimed that his gang was not the only one operating in the area, as other gangs from Agbado and Agege communities in the state also operated there. Other members of the gang arrested by the police were Saviour Daniel, Daniel Olayemi and Abdulwahab Yusuph.
RRS operatives had, last Tuesday evening, arrested one of John’s gang members, Olayemi, who was involved in a fight with a member of another gang over a Samsung tablet in Oshodi.
Olayemi had confessed to the police that he stole the tablet from a lady who was gang-raped during one of their operations at Charity Bus stop.
The revelation prompted an early morning raid of Charity Bus Stop the following day, where three other members of the gang were picked.
It was learnt that Olayemi, in his confession to investigators, revealed that they were four in John’s gang, saying that in the last two weeks, the gang had robbed 12 passers-by and raped no fewer than nine ladies in the bush at the bus-stop.
“I have followed him (John) to more than 12 operations. We were always operating at Charity Bus Stop from 4:00 a.m. to 5:40 a.m. Our last operation was on a lady of about 57 years old. She was passing by the bus-stop, and I snatched her hand bag and disappeared into the bush,” Olayemi stated.
The suspect also added that, “I came out of the bush only to see three of my colleagues having sex with the lady. I then hid the best of the three phones I found in her bag. I disclosed to them that I saw only two small phones and N8, 000 in her bag.”
He continued that, “we had, in a similar circumstance days before, raped a middle-aged lady at the same spot when we didn’t see any valuable in her bag. We took turns to rape her, after which we allowed her to go.”
The suspect also stated that “in all the rape cases, John took the initiative and the lead. He dragged the ladies into the bush before calling on us to take our turns. He is the leader of the gang. None of us dare challenge him. He doesn’t share with us whatever we made from the robberies equally. That was why I stole the Samsung tablet from the lady that day.
“We also robbed men too. I participated in the robbery of about three men at the same bus stop, and in all the operations, John took the lead, seizing the victims and dragging them into the bush where we raped and/or took their valuables,” Olayemi said.
In his own confession, Saviour said, “I didn’t partake in all the rape sessions. I was only involved on three occasions. John was the one who dragged them into the bush and undressed them. He took the lead and ordered us to take turns.
“He is our leader. He is stronger than us and he instructed us to have sex with them. Whenever he got exhausted, he ordered us to take our turns. I had my turn after him, and it was the youngest of us, Olayemi, who came last. At times, they distanced themselves whenever we were taking turns.”
Compelled by the revelations of his colleagues, the leader of the gang, John, explained that “in the last two weeks, we had robbed and dragged nine women between the ages of 27 years to 57 years into the bush and raped them.
“We took turns to rape them. While our primary aim was to steal their valuables, I have been molesting most of them after robbing them. It is true that it has been my idea, but we have all been doing it together,” he said.
“After robbing the ladies, I would drag them into the nearby bush. If they were young ladies, I would carry them into the bush. For instance, I carried a lady of about 24 into the bush two weeks ago.
“After taking turns on her, other gang members ran away after taking all she had on her. When they were gone, her dress was messed up so I took her to where she cleaned up.
She couldn’t even find her shoes so I got a new pair of slippers for her before I gave her N500 for transport fare to Iyana Ipaja area”, he added.
John however disclosed that “we are not the only gang operating there. I know of about three other gangs that rob there. Some groups of boys come from Agbado and Agege areas to operate at Charity Bus Stop. They operate in the evening.”
Confirming the arrest of the gang, the image maker of the Lagos State Police Command, Dolapo Badmos, said the suspects had been transferred to the Criminal Investigations Department, Panti for further investigations.
