Six suspected members of a notorious robbery syndicate have been apprehended by officials of the Lagos State Traffic Management Authority (LASTMA).
Following what it described as a successful operation, LASTMA management disclosed that many stolen items, including assorted smart phones, were also recovered in the process.
Reports indicated that the suspects, who are members of a “one-chance” syndicate, were caught in the act around the Ijora Bridge area in Lagos, a known hotspot for criminal activities.
The joint operation, which involved LASTMA officials and other law enforcement agencies, targeted illegal garages, makeshift parks, and shanties in the area.
Upon searching the suspects, authorities recovered 77 assorted mobile phones, two POS machines, several wristwatches, and other personal effects believed to have been stolen from unsuspecting commuters.
Identified as Adetunji Bashiru, Sulaiman Kada, Abubakar Bala, Abubakar Ahmed, Rasaq Gbadamosi, and Ibrahim Yakub, the suspects are currently in custody pending further investigations and prosecution.
Special Adviser to the Governor on Transportation, Sola Giwa, who confirmed the arrest, said the suspects were arrested during a joint inter-agency enforcement exercise targeted at dismantling illegal garages and parks operated by commercial transporters, as well as the removal of unauthorized shanties and criminal hideouts around Apapa Road, Costain, and Ijora under bridge.
Giwa revealed that the operation yielded substantial recoveries, including 77 assorted mobile phones, 2 POS machines, multiple wristwatches, and other personal effects believed to have been forcibly taken from unsuspecting commuters and pedestrians.
According to Giwa, “Preliminary investigations have revealed that the Ijora under-bridge axis had long served as a criminal enclave, accommodating miscreants, illegal traders, and “one-chance” syndicates who specialize in orchestrated theft, violent assaults, and dispossession of innocent citizens.
“The area had also evolved into a clandestine storage hub for stolen valuables and contraband goods.”
The Governor’s Aide further said, “During the operation, enforcement personnel also discovered and confiscated several kegs of adulterated diesel and over 150 packs of expired plantain chips and Cheese Balls, which were being hoarded under unsanitary conditions posing grave threats to public health and the environment.
“In addition, the joint task team successfully demolished over 120 illegal shanties, including structures erected along the perimeter fence of St. Peter’s Catholic Nursery and Primary School, Apapa Road, thereby reclaiming the area’s urban integrity and restoring its aesthetic order”.
Furthermore, Giwa said the Sanwo-Olu administration’s zero-tolerance policy towards environmental infractions, unlawful occupation of public infrastructure, and proliferation of criminal enclaves across Lagos.
While noting that the clean-up and arrests were integral components of the government’s holistic strategy to ensure a safer, cleaner, and more habitable metropolis, the Special Adviser warned criminal elements and illegal occupants still operating beneath bridges and in unauthorized spaces to vacate immediately.
He said government was ready to undertake similar enforcement operations would be sustained with renewed vigor until full compliance is achieved across the State.
Meanwhile, the General Manager of LASTMA, Mr. Olalekan Bakare-Oki, commended the professional synergy among all participating enforcement agencies, describing the exercise as a demonstration of inter-agency cooperation at its best.
He said LASTMA’s mandate transcends conventional traffic management, extending into public safety, environmental protection, and the safeguarding of transport corridors from criminal encroachment.
He urged residents to remain vigilant, report suspicious activities promptly, and cooperate with ongoing government efforts to sanitize and secure the city’s transport infrastructure.
It was reliably gathered that the suspects would be transferred to the appropriate law enforcement authorities for further investigation and prosecution in line with existing laws of Lagos State.
