In The Bag Thieves who cause accidents to rob victims arrested

A car-snatching syndicate whose mode of operation was to cause accidents on the roads, thereby forcing innocent drivers to stop so they could rob and dispossess them of their valuables, has been snatched by men of the Lagos State Police Command.

The leader of the gang identified as Sunday Ozor, 39, from Boki local government area of Cross River State, confessed to the police that their ingenuity in causing the accidents has led his gang to several successful operations.

Ozor said that during such stage-managed accidents, their victims often came down to inspect the extent of damage and the gang members would swoop on the hapless victim and snatch the vehicle and any other valuables found on them.

It was gathered that five members of the gang who operated in the Iyana-Iba, Igando and Igbo Elerin areas on the Lagos-Badagry Expressway, were nabbed by operatives of the Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS).

Others arrested include Ifeanyichukwu Chukwu, Matthew Arome, Ebere John, and Ikechukwu Chilanka.

Ozor, a married father of two, denied being the gang leader but confessed thus:

"Sometime in April, we went to the Igando area at about 7.30 pm for an operation and we saw a lady driving a flashy car. We hit her car from behind and when she came down, our gang leader, Danjuma Sule, pointed a gun at her.

Another gang member entered her car and drove off. We also took her away from the scene and dropped her on the Obadore Bridge. The vehicle was taken to Onitsha for sale, but the police have recovered it."

His deputy in command, Chukwu, an indigene of Umunze, Anambra State, said he had sold six stolen cars for the gang.

"I am based in Onitsha, and I sell the cars for the gang. There was a car they brought to me, I sold it for N700,000 and gave the gang N500,000. I have received about six cars from them. I knew they were snatching them, but I was in a financial mess. I did not have any option."

Recovered from the gang were a barreta pistol, one locally-made double-barrelled cut-to-size gun loaded with two live cartridges, and six other live cartridges, eight vehicles including a Toyota Highlander, a Lexus, and a Toyota Corolla, allegedly snatched by the gang in different areas of Lagos.