Pastor’s Bible “Exposes” Dare-Devil Robbery Gang
Adetokunbo Fakeye
Dare-devil robbers who robbed a pastor of his Toyota Camry car and buyer of the vehicle have been nabbed through 
the pastor’s bible inside the car.
The victim, Pastor Lawal Adesoye Zacheous, of Unity Estate, Idimu/Egbeda after he was robbed went to the Lagos Commissioner of Police, Umar Manko, and reported the incident.
The commissioner assigned the case to Special Anti-Robbery Squad, SARS who swung into action immediately.
A few weeks after the robbery, police nailed three suspects namely, Monday Patrick, Michael Adeagbo and Ismaila Kazeem, alias Asumo.
The SARS officers also nabbed the buyers of the vehicle. They are; Odu John, Promise Woke and Ifeoluwa Coker.
Odu was said to be a graduate of Zoology (2011) of the University of Port Harcourt, Rivers State. He also said to have had his Post graduate diploma in Management Sciences, while Coker graduated as Biologist from the Federal University of Technology, Akure, Ondo State.
On information, SARS operatives stormed the home of Patrick, who at initial stage showed innocent but, the vigilant policemen noticed a giant bible in his house and flipping through it. In the process they discovered the name on it as that of the pastor.
They also recovered gun used in the operation from the house.
Upon interrogation thereafter, Patrick said, he became Michael friend after he came to his shop to sew clothes.
“One day, Michael came with a black bag to my shop. He said I should keep it for him. After about two days, I opened the bag and saw a gun inside. I waited for him for two days, but he didn’t come. It was while I was waiting for him that police came to arrest me.” Said Patrick who denied being an armed robber.
Patrick, added “If Michael brings cloth to me to sew, he would give me money and phones. He had given phones to me twice. I did not know he is a robber. When I saw the bible, I kept it in my shop because it was very big and I liked it.”
Police informed that the suspects met their waterloo when the Officer in Charge of SARS, SP Abba Kyari, received instruction from Manko to go after the fleeing robbers.
Adeagbo said that he and Ismail Kazeem carried out the robbery attack, adding that the snatched car was with Kazeem.
Kazeem on the other hand, said that the car was with John Odu, who was arrested at Ikotun while trying to receive another snatched vehicle from the same Kazeem.
Odu said that he had already sold the pastor’s car to a customer identified as Promise Woke at Port Harcourt while Kazeem told detectives he had once sold a Toyota Camry to Desmond Inwerem and Ifeoluwa Coker.
Adeagbo, 25, an ex-convict, recalled how the pastor was robbed.
His chorus: “As the pastor was returning from work, I and Kazeem followed him because we were already in the street. The pastor came down to open the gate to his home and we forced him into the car. We used only one gun. I brought the gun from Ife. As we snatched the vehicle, Kazeem collected the car, sold it and did not give me any money.”
Remembering his past robberies, Adeagbo said: “We have stolen laptops four times, handsets and gold. I, Lucky and Kunle did that job. Lucky is dead. He died during a robbery operation. Kunle is in prison now. I was not a robber before, but it was in prison I learnt about robbery.”
Kazeem, 27, said that he met Michael while they were both riding commercial motorbikes at Oshodi.
“I have snatched one Jeep with Michael at Festac. We forged a fake gun, using ceiling fan pipe. It took me about a week before I sold the car of the pastor because Michael did not want us to sell the car.
“He wanted us to be using it for operation. I sold the Camry for N290,000. I did not give him any share because I believed there was money in the two bags he removed from the pastor’s car.”
According to Kazeem, Michael called him that there was another snatched car to be sold and without thinking, he had dashed to meet his partner in crime, only to walk into the waiting arms of the police.
Odu, 39, a father of four, said that he was working with a construction company, Dredging Atlantic, in Port Harcourt before his appointment was terminated in 2010 and had to relocated to Lagos in March 2014.
“Kazeem brought the car to me to buy. I knew him through Kehinde. I have bought two cars from him before. I’m aware the cars he brought were stolen cars. I bought the pastor’s car for N290,000. The previous car he sold to me was also a Camry. I bought that one for N180,000. I resold the one of N290,000 for N400,000 and the one of N180,000 for N280,000.” He said.
Woke, 36, father of four, is a registered Chivita juice seller and lives in his own house at Ikwere Road, Port Harcourt.
He chorus: “Odu sold the car to me. The particulars of the Pastor were in the car. Odu told me that he wanted to sell the car for N600,000. He said that his friend who works with Customs had a problem and wanted to sell the car. I brought my elder brother to help me negotiate. I bought it for N400,000. I knew Odu while we were in primary school. We ran into each other sometime ago in Port Harcourt and exchanged phone numbers. I did not know the car was stolen. I’m an innocent buyer.”
Coker, 28, said: “Desmond is my guardian right from when I was in the University. We attend the same Church. I was arrested in respect of a Toyota Camry Desmond instructed me to receive on behalf of a church member, which he helped to purchase. Desmond was not in town. Desmond called and informed me someone was bringing a car from Cotonou. He did not tell me the person. The car was not registered. Desmond was to deliver it to a church member who had paid part payment for a car. He directed us to meet the man and the man liked it.”