Pardoned prison inmate re-arrested for armed robbery "stubborn tin"

The police in Lagos State have arrested a
22-year-old man, Musa Ojo, for armed
robbery.
PUNCH Metro learnt that the suspect was
among the prison inmates recently
pardoned by the state government in
pursuant to the provisions of Section 1(1)
of the Criminal Justice Release from
Custody Special Provision Act, CAP C40,
2007, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria.
It was learnt that a few weeks after his
release, the suspect, who goes by the
pseudonym, Agba Musa, and two others
at large, on September 14, 2013, snatched
a Toyota Corolla car marked LSR 587 AR.
Our correspondent learnt that operatives
of the Special Anti-Robbery Squad, who
were on patrol duty at the Ijesha end of
Oshodi-Apapa Expressway, sighted the
robbers and chased them.
Police said when the heat became too
much for the robbers, they jumped out of
the vehicle and took to their heels.
Musa was, however, arrested by SARS
men and the vehicle was recovered, while
the other two escaped.
Speaking with our correspondent at the
state command headquarters in Ikeja, the
suspect said it was not his initial plan to
become an armed robber.
He said, “Initially, I did not want to be an
armed robber. I lived in Ebute Meta and I
owned a motorcycle. Two of my friends
told me to give them a ride to Aguda,
Surulere. On getting there, they brought
out guns and started robbing people. I
swear I did not know that they were going
for an operation. That was how I joined
them.
“I ended up following them for 10 robbery
operations. We usually operated in Onike,
Yaba, Bariga and Somolu, where we
robbed small shops. Later, we started
snatching vehicles such as Toyota and
Honda and we would give a dealer to sell.
My share was always N50,000.
“My gang comprised myself, Kehinde
Nice, Asumo and Nuru. The police
arrested Asumo and I, while Nuru was
killed. Kehinde is still on the run.”
The suspect said after spending one and a
half years in prison, he and about 80
others were pardoned.
He said he went back to robbery because
he was tempted by bad friends and
needed money to survive.
While crying profusely, he said, “I
dropped out of school in JSS2 and
became an apprentice at a mechanic
workshop but I did not finish my training.
“After sometime, I got a girl pregnant and
became a father with responsibilities.
Unfortunately, my father is late and my
mother is old, so I have no one to help
me.
“After leaving prison, I started receiving
calls from people that they needed
vehicles and I was short of money. So, I
thought to myself that if I could steal just
one car, I would be alright. I did not know
that police had been on my trail from the
day I was released.”
The Oyo State indigene asked the police
to give him one more chance, promising
that he would not return to his old ways.
“I never killed anyone during my
robberies, please. If they can spare me
one last time, I will be grateful,” he said.
Deputy Police Public Relations Officer,
Damasus Ozoani, said the suspect would
be charged to court for armed robbery.