Edet Ekuno, a 32-year-old ex-banker, and other seven people have been arrested for alleged kidnapping, robbery and illegal arms dealing.
Ekuno, worked in collaboration with Hope Okon, an ND 2 Computer Engineering student in an Akwa Ibom polytechnic; Sunday Samiga, Unagbon Isaiah and other suspects still at large, to kidnap rich residents in Lagos and Akwa Ibom states.
The suspects were arrested at about 2am on March 7 at D2 Hotel in the Ojodu-Berger area, where they were reportedly rounding up plans to kidnap a businessman in Magodo Estate. However, a cab driver, who aids the syndicate with his car, was said to have evaded arrest.
Two locally-made pistols and 18 live cartridges were recovered from them.
The former banker, Ekuno, who lives in Ajah, said he joined the group in 2012 to kidnap one of his neighbours working with Chevron, but could not explain what prompted him to the act.
He said, “I was laid off by the bank I used to work for. I am also an estate agent and the music minister in a church. I don’t just know what came over me. The 2012 operation involved a neighbour, but it was not successful. The man shouted for help and we fled with his money and phones. We were five in that operation. I was given N20,000 from the proceeds. Magodo operation was my second attempt.”
27-year-old Okon however revealed in his confession, that he made N800,000 from one of his operations. He added that he had been in Lagos for about two weeks monitoring their victim’s movements.
He said, “In 2010, in Akwa Ibom, we kidnapped a woman whose daughter is a medical doctor. We released her after her family paid N5M. My share was N800,000. I used it to keep poultry, but it later collapsed due to poor management. The cab driver gave us information that the businessman was rich because he rode different types of cars. I was about to go back to Akwa Ibom having exhausted the N50,000 on me when we were arrested. Samiga and Isaiah usually helped us to scare our victims with guns but they don’t kill.”
Mr Kayode Aderanti, The Lagos State Commissioner of police, while speaking with Punch said the suspects were apprehended through information provided by members of the public.
He also chipped in that the police would hunt down the bandits who killed three cops and a fish seller while robbing a bank in Lekki.
“We will ensure that perpetrators of Lekki robbery are brought to justice. The type of weapons used by these robbers showed that they were well prepared. It requires diligent investigation to fish them out. I promise that such an attack will not happen again.” He said.
Image Credit : Punch
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