The suspect
The suspect arrested with a Ghana-made triple barrel
gun in Iseyin town, Oyo State, Ajibola Ibrahim (32) a.k.a. Scorpion, has denied
the allegation of motorcycle stealing brought against him, saying that he
turned a new leaf after his last arrest and was working as a political thug
when he was arrested.
Crime Reports in January 25, 2015 publication which carried
Ajibola’s story, in which he was accused of stealing motorcycles and shooting
one of the owners when accosted. The triple barrel gun was said to have been
recovered from him.
Ajibola, an indigene of Iseyin town, admitted
that the gun was found on him but said that it was meant for his current job as
a political thug, not robbery. He added that his accusers were only trying to
implicate him because of his criminal past.
Ibrahim had once been arrested by SARS operatives in
Ibadan late 2011 with two others – Saheed Akere and Toyin Ikudoro – when the
law enforcement agents stormed their hideout in Igbojaye village in Oke Ogun
area of the state to arrest them. The name he gave to the police then was
Ibrahim Rafiu. The leader of the gang then, one Lanre Ekwueme was shot when he
tried to escape arrest by shooting his way out. They were said to be an
interstate robbery gang who stole motorcycles from owners at gunpoint.
In an interview with Crime Reports, Ibrahim, who said
he left prison about six months ago, disclosed that he was an ardent marijuana
smoker and started taking the banned drug since 2004.
“It is true I was an armed robber but after I was
arrested and remanded in prison in 2011, I made up my mind to stop. It was my
friend who took me to Igbojaye village where we were suspected by the
villagers. I rode one of the two motorcycles we took there. We were arrested
with two motorcycles. I knew our gang leader then, Lanre Ekwueme, in Iseyin,
though he was from Akure, Ondo State. We also had two guns.
“SARS operatives stormed our hideout in the night and
arrested two of us while our leader, Lanre, was gunned down when he tried to
escape. I was remanded in prison custody and only came out about six months
ago. The case was struck out.
“Since I came out of prison, I have been following a
politician as a thug. I have been working for one of the gubernatorial
candidates (names withheld) in Oyo State. One of his boys, popularly called
Alubarika Risler, is the one in change of coordination of the activities of the
thugs working for the candidate. Anytime there was going to be campaign in any
part of the state, Alubarika would call us and we would come to Ibadan to join
the campaign train.
“On the recent case, I did not steal any motorcycles.
I was only roped in because the Iseyin people knew my history and believed that
I was still a dangerous person.
“On Saturday, January 10, 2015, I travelled from Lagos
to Iseyin to attend a carnival taking place in our town. The gubernatorial
candidate I was working for had a campaign rally in Ibadan on Monday, January
12, so my intention was to go to Ibadan on Sunday after the Iseyin rally, to
prepare for the rally.
“Before I came to Ibadan, Alubarika came to me in
Lagos. He had five guns with him, out of which he gave me one with three live
cartridges. They were all new and he told me he just bought them. He said I
should always have the gun with me anytime we would be going for campaign.
“After disembarking from the vehicle that brought me
from Lagos, I mounted a bike to get to the centre of Iseyin town, only to be
stopped at a point by some people who said they suspected me. They searched me
and found the gun I had on me. They said robbers came to the town to take their
bikes and they were waiting to see if they would try to take the bikes out of
the town through the route I came in. They even disclosed that one of them was
shot by the armed robbers in the early hours of same day.
“When I looked at the people around, I saw some of
those who knew I had a criminal case in the past and I believed that they were
the ones who pointed at me as a suspect. They started beating me and took the
gun, my phone, cash (about N74,000) and my gold chain. They took me to Iseyin
police station from where I was transferred to Special Anti-Robbery Squad,
Dugbe, Ibadan. I was not caught with any bike and I did not shoot anyone.”
Ibrahim said he was ignorant of the fact that it was
criminal to possess a gun unlawfully. “My parents warned me against going
contrary to the law but I am a stubborn person. This is the result of
stubbornness. My past deeds are still haunting me.”
He revealed that he was called Scorpion “because of my
prowess in subduing stubborn cows. I also trained in boxing, so I have always
been known as a tough guy.”
When contacted, the police image maker in Oyo State,
Adekunle Ajisebutu confirmed the story, saying that the command was still
investigating the case.
Culled from Tribune
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