Pregnant mother, 7 others arrested for armed robbery in Lagos (PICTURED)

Eight persons suspected to be armed robbers
have been arrested and were yesterday
paraded by operatives of the Lagos State
Police Command.
The robbers, one of whom is a married and
pregnant mother of two identified as Taiwo
Obafunsho, are suspected of conducting
robbery operations during one of which
they allegedly killed two police officers.
Obafunsho, who is 3 months pregnant,
reportedly said that she was influenced in
her decision to join the gang by a friend.
Vanguard Newspaper reports:
The other suspects are Ife Olubaba, 29 who is
the alleged gang leader; Saheed Wasiu, 23;
Sedu Idowu 20; Wasiu Rafiu, 23; Odelade
Kabiru, 26; Waliu Sanni, 29, and Taiye Agege
said to be dead.
The suspects were found with two AK-47
rifles, one automatic pump-action gun, four
locally-made pistols, two fully-loaded AK-47
magazines, 135 live cartridges and a Hyundai
Tucson sports utility vehicle, number plate
MUS 350 BG.
Rafiu said: “The first operation we went for
was at Agege and I was given N10,000. I was
arrested at Oshodi.
“I did not know anything about it. But
because they saw Taiye and me together, I
was arrested. I did not even know what was
happening. I did not follow them during the
second operation.”
Another suspect, Sanni, said they took three
vehicles for the operation, but that they did
not find anything or any body to rob.
The Police Public Relations Officer, PPRO,
Ngozi Braide, confirmed the incident, stating
that it was a follow-up to what happened on
November 3, where some robbers attacked
policemen attached to Iju Police Station in
Lagos at 3a.m.
She said: “On October 9, when a group of
armed robbers carted away two police rifles,
the Commissioner of Police, Umar Manko,
directed the officer in charge of SARS Ikeja,
SP Abba Kyari, to launch a massive manhunt
for the robbers and recover the snatched
rifles.
“Police efforts paid off when eight of the
armed robbers, led by one Ife Olubaba, a boy
to Godogodo, kingpin of South-West armed
robbers, were arrested at various locations
in Lagos and Ogun states.
“During the exchange of fire between the
armed robbers and crack SARS operatives,
one Taiye Agege was fatally wounded.”
She said all the arrested suspects confessed
to have taken part in the Iju operation, where
Policemen were fired. She said efforts were
on to arrest the remaining gang members.