One chance robbers arrested and sentenced to 7 years in jail in Lagos

Two ‘ One Chance ’ robbers, Chuckwudi Ezeudo and
Wilfred Ukpo have both been sentenced to seven years
imprisonment each, after they both confessed and
pleaded guilty to the charge of ‘ conspiracy to steal . The
2 convicts were arrested after they robbed an innocent
passenger, Uzor Philip of his two bags, which contained
valuables, and a cell phone .
According to Vanguard, Uzor Philip had boarded a bus
going from Oshodi to PWD area of Lagos at about 6pm,
carrying two bags which contained valuables. Being the
rush hour, the area was crowded with several people
who wanted to go home , when a pick and drop bus ,
with number plate EPE 165 XS , approached and
stopped .
Philip boarded the bus and sat behind the driver but
was persuaded to by the driver to seat in the front seat
with another ‘ apssenger’.
When they got to Ladipo, the bus conductor
announced that the front door was faulty and that he
needed to quickly ‘fix ’ the problem.
As soon as the driver slowed down, the ‘ co- passenger’
pushed Philip out of the moving bus , which made it
unable for him to retrieve his his two bags and cell
phone (Techno W2) . The bus immediately made a u-
turn and headed back to Oshodi .
When Philip realized that he was a victim of ‘ one-
chance’ he raised the alarm which attracted members
of the Task Force who launched a chase after the bus.
During the chase, the Task Force members realized
that the bus was far ahead of them and almost gave up
the chase , when they sighted a patrol van of the Lagos
State Task Force returning from an operation. They
informed the Task Force team of what was going on
and those ones went after the bus and caught up with
it around Mile 2.
One of the suspects took to his heels while the driver
and his conductor were apprehended and the bus
impounded by the Task Force . 50 cell phones and other
valuables were recovered from the bus. On switching on
some of the cell phones calls began to come in from
their owners and the Task Force requested their
contacts so they could return the phones to their
rightful owners after proper identification .
Speaking with Sunday Vanguard, one of the victims ,
whose mobile phone (Alcatel Pop Star 5) had been
snatched , Ajimati Adeyemi , 33, said he joined the bus
with other passengers along Mile 2 when the conductor
and one other person , dressed in ‘ black suit’ , suddenly
stood up and collected all their cell phones and wallets
before they were forced down at different bus -stops
before Mile 2.
He said:
“ I was surprised when I called my mobile
line and I was told to come to Lagos State
Task Force at Bolade , Oshodi where it was
returned to me along with others. ”
A female victim , Yewande Adeboye, who claimed to
have been seriously injured after she was pushed off by
the same bus conductor, said she was sexually
assaulted and nearly raped before her mobile phone
was snatched at Rainbow Bus -stop along Apapa- Oshodi
Expressway , Lagos by the same crew .
The Chairman of the Task Force , SP Olayinka
Egbeyemi , said the robbers were chased and
captured after a victim reported that he was robbed by
the people in the bus . He said they were apprehended
around Mile 2 area with 50 different stolen mobile
phones.
In their statements, the convicts, Chuckwudi Ezeudo , of
No . 1, Ezeudo Lane , off Babarin Street , Ajegunle , and
Mr. Wilfred Ukpo , of No . 1, Ajose Street , Ajegunle ,
Olodi-Apapa , Lagos, confessed they had been using the
bus to rob commuters around Lagos .
They confessed that they frequently operated in
different parts of Lagos like Obalende , Orile , Pen-
cinema, Ojota and its environs . He admitted that any
passenger who refused to cooperate with them ended
up being beaten and thrown out of the bus while still in
motion.
He said:
“ We had been in this business for a long
time and, snatching more than 50 phones
and other items daily which we sold as
fairly used at Computer Village, Ikeja and
Ajegunle . “Sometimes we even indecently
assault our victims , especially women . ”
Egbeyemi told Sunday Vanguard the robbers have been
charged to court and convicted while the recovered
items had been returned to their owners on ‘bond ’ after
a thorough screening . He said the men were each
sentenced to seven years imprisonment after they both
pleaded guilty to one count of ‘ conspiracy to steal
contrary to Section 409 of Lagos State Command Law
of 2011 ’ which was levelled against them.
Magistrate Lateef Owolabi , of the Lagos State Mobile
Court, Oshodi , said the seven years jail term without
option of fine was to serve as deterrent to others still
into criminal .
The Chairman urged members of the public to always
report illegal and criminal activities around them to law
enforcement agencies


Source:Vanguard