The Ogun State Police Command displayed three police officers on Tuesday who had been subjected to an orderly room trial for their involvement in an armed robbery in Ijebu-Ode, following which they were dismissed and would be tried in court.
Inspector Taiwo Kolawole (AP/No. 341113), Inspector John Ogbe (AP/No. 309292), and Cpl. Idowu Sunday (AP/No. 513707) have all been sacked. All of the officers were stationed at Ijebu-Ife, Ijebu East Local Government Area of the state.
This comes after a Library and Information Science student from Tai Solarin University of Education in Ijagun, as well as Abdul-Azeez Ibrahim, a suspected Black Axe cultist, were arrested in connection with a series of kidnappings and violent robberies in and around Ijebu Ode and its surrounds.
Ibrahim was claimed to have been detained on Saturday, January 27, in Imaweje Ijebu, Odogbolu Local Government Area of the state.
He was believed to have been caught with seven different firearms and charms, all of which he was accused of utilising for his criminal activities.
Abiodun Alamutu, the Commissioner of Police, said this on Tuesday while briefing reporters at the state command’s Eleweran headquarters in Abeokuta on the state’s success in combating crime and criminalities.
Speaking about the dismissal of the three police officers, Alamutu stated that one Kashimao Emmanuel of Tai Solarin University of Education, Ijagun, Ogun State, reported on January 12 at around 8:45 a.m. that the three former police officers accosted him while driving and forced him to transfer funds from his account to an Opay account number 9097829766.
Alamutu said, “On 12/01/2024, at about 0845hrs, one Kashimao Emmanuel ‘m’ of TASUED Ijebu-Ode reported at the station that while he was driving in his Toyota Venza car, with Reg No. LSD 813 EX brown in colour, that he came across a gang of four armed men, and one of them was putting on a police round neck camouflage, while three others were on mufti.
“They demanded his phone, which he calmly declined. In the process, one of them fired a shot into the air, and that was when he complied.
“They entered his car and took him away towards the Sagamu Expressway. On getting to Ososa, they made a U-turn to Ijebu-Ode, where a sum of N312,000 was forcefully transferred from his account to an Opay account no. 9097829766.
“Upon receipt of the report, the DPO quickly made a call to the Opay account number, where it was discovered that the Opay account number belongs to a POS operator in Ijebu-Ode.
“The DPO then gave instructions that on no account should the POS operator give out the money transferred to him to anyone who comes for it. More so, the operator should tactically delay anyone who comes for the money pending his arrival.
“On getting to the POS shop at Ibadan garage, one Force No. 513707 Cpl. Idowu Sunday attached to Ijebu-Ife was met waiting to cash the money and was promptly arrested.
“While taking him to the station, he sighted his accomplices, namely AP/No 341113 Inspector Taiwo Kolawole and AP/No 309292 Inspector John Ogbe, both of whom were attached to the Ijebu-Ife Division, and one civilian, Adesiyan Mathew, who happened to be the driver, was also arrested.
“In the course of the investigation, two other complainants who were victims at various times came forward and identified them as having earlier robbed them of their belongings in the same manner.
“The three policemen have been tried in an orderly room and dismissed. They will be charged to court soonest.”
The CP further stated that over 80 suspects were detained for various criminal crimes such as cultism, armed robbery, and abduction, among others in Ogun State.
