Borrowing guns is too expensive, says robbery suspect

A suspect has said he went into gun-running because borrowing guns for robbery operations was too expensive.

Operatives of the Federal Special Anti-Robbery Squad, FSARS, arrested him and his accomplice, members of a gang that had been terrorising residents of Okokomaiko and its environs.

The suspects were, yesterday, paraded alongside 35 other suspects at the Police Officers Mess, Ikeja.

One of them, Sadiq Yakubu, disclosed that he usually bought guns from Cotonou, Benin Republic at N20,000 and sold same to members of his gang and other gangs for between N30,000 and N40,000.

The 21-year-old Yakubu further disclosed that members of his gang usually robbed their victims, mostly females, while they were at the verge of boarding commercial buses.

He added that he had lost three of his guns to Police in foiled operations.

He said: “I bought the guns for myself, members of my gang and other gangs, who know what I do. I started the business last year, when I discovered it was more expensive to rent a gun than having a personal one.

“We operate at Iyana-Sashi, Igboelerin and Okokomaiko area of Lagos. At night we attack vehicles at Iyana-Sashi during traffic jams, dispossess passengers of cash and telephones. We operate with Okada. Mohammed introduced me to robbery. My operational name is Yankees.

“I was arrested at Ajangbandi, after an operation at a lotto house. One of my friends invited me to join him for the operation because I had arms. Unfortunately after the operation, he fled with the loot, while I was arrested because I didn’t know the terrain.”

On his part, a member of the gang, Mohammed Abubakar, 22, disclosed that he had just been released from prison having served six months, over a similar offence.