Six suspected motorbike snatchers, allies arrested in Ekiti

The police in Ekiti State have arrested eight men suspected to be involved in the snatching of motorbikes from riders and the sale of the stolen properties.

The Commissioner of Police, Ekiti State Command, Mr Adeniran Akinwale, said that “the suspects included one Adebayo Bashiru, Oluyemi Kunle, Gabriel Isaac, Abubakar Abdullahi, Macon Andrew and Peter Ninfa who are suspected vehicles and motorcycles snatchers within Ikere/Ado-Ekiti and Igede-Ekiti axis.”

The CP, in a statement by the Police Public Relations Officer, Ekiti State Command, Sunday Abutu, on Thursday, said, “The suspects were arrested by the command’s Rapid Response Squad following a tip-off.

“The suspects, during interrogation, confessed that they had snatched so many motorcycles from their owners within the Ikere/Ado/Igede-Ekiti area and further mentioned one Lawali Ibrahim and Kabiru Abdullahi as their accomplices who usually bought the motorcycles from them after snatching.

“Intensified efforts led to the arrest of the two buyers who further confessed that they had transported seven of the stolen motorcycles to the Northern part of Nigeria for resale.

“One unregistered yellow colour Bajaj Boxer motorcycle was recovered from them at the point of arrest. Meanwhile, some of the victims came to identify the recovered motorcycle as the one used by the robbers to accost them and escape after robbing them,” the statement added.

The police boss, who said efforts would be intensified to arrest all others connected with snatching motorbikes, said the suspects would be charged in court upon the conclusion of investigations.

According Metro gathered that there had been incessant snatching of motorcycles in Ado Ekiti and some parts of the state recently following which the police commissioner placed the residents, motorbike owners and riders on the alert while he ordered his men to intensify efforts to ensure the arrest of the culprits.

On April 25, the Oye Divisional Police Headquarters in collaboration with some residents of Trinity Hostel Area, Oye-Ekiti, arrested a suspected motorcycle snatcher, one Bernard Shadrach, who, alongside his fleeing gang members, had snatched so many motorcycles from their owners within Oye Ekiti.