Police arrest 12 criminals in Anambra,family dangles N1m bribe to his release

The Police in Anambra State have arrested no fewer than 12 criminals including a serial robber who has robbed about 20 victims in Fegge, part of Onitsha.

The other eleven criminals were arrested in Ogidi and other adjoining towns in Idemili local government area of the state which have of late become hot bed for criminal activities in the state.

According to the Divisional Police Officer (DPO) of Onitsha South, Fegge, Garba Rabiu, the suspect, Chinemerem Elebeke, alias Meskana who has been terrorizing Onitsha and environs was arrested weekend.

This generated a lot of excitement by the people especially the victims who stormed the Fegge Police station Onitsha, to commend the DPO and his feat on hearing that the dreaded armed robber has been arrested.

The victims, most of who were dispossessed of their belongings and cash at gun point, spoke to newsmen and described the armed robber as “one in a million” starting that his name wherever heard, sent jitters down the spines of the people.

Rabiu a Superintendent of Police (SP) said, “he has robbed about 30 innocent victims at different locations that include Ogbaru, Fegge, Odoakpu, Inland town and environs and got away with it.

He has been a great terror to residents of those areas and for long, we have been trailing him and I know that if we don’t get him, my area will remain unsafe.. As God will have it, on a tip-off that he was somewhere at Odoakpu, we mobilized and on getting there, arrested him”.

He said, “since his arrest victims of his armed robbery escapades have continued to flood the station only to have a glimpse of him and he confessed robbing more than 30 people.
His parents physically came in here begging for his release with N1million but you know money is not everything. This is somebody who has caused much trauma to the society including a pastor.

Among places he confessed to have robbed included petrol filling stations, shops, markets and some residential homes and people heaved a sigh of relief.
He will be charged to court immediately, as soon as we are through with our investigation”.

In a related development, the new DPO of Ogidi Police Station in Idemili North local Government Area, Mr Mark Ijarafu, has said that eleven armed robbery suspects were arrested and six locally made guns recovered within one month of his arrival to the Station.

Ijarafu, a Chief Superintendent of Police (CSP) made the disclosure while reacting to the
incessant attack on policemen in Idemili Local Government and environs by armed robbers in which about five policemen were said to have lost their lives.

He said,”within my one month in office here in Ogidi, I have been able to arrest 11 armed robbers and six locally made guns recovered from them. It is either they leave this place or they will meet their waterloo. We go to their hide out and we are in trail of those who killed a police Inspector at Ugwunwasike and other places .This place cannot contain them and us, most of those we arrested have been handed over to Special Anti Robbery Squad, SARS, Awkuzu, for further investigation.”

He, also, said that they were arrested in Nkpor, Ogidi. Abatete, among other communities, stating that most of the flash points like, Umusiome, All saints road where suspected cultists recently killed a man, Attah road, Ugwunwasike round-about axis and others were being closely monitored.

He urged the people in the area to cooperate by giving useful information to the police in order to help flush out undesirable elements from the area pointing out that “the ‘s identity would be treated with uttermost confidentiality”.

The DPO who in his former station at Central Police station Onitsha,fought men of the underworld to submission, vowed to repeat the feat in his new found land, Ogidi Division,

According to him, the local vigilance groups have been of immense help in the war against criminals and reiterated his resolve to work with them and other security operatives to make the area a better place to live in.

The DPO commended Governor Willie Obiano for his assistance to the police through the commissioner of police stating that the state remains the safest in the country.