Saturday, October 17, 2026 -Two ex-convict, Ekjike Ani, 32, and Chubuzor Anasihwe, 31, have been arrested by operatives of the Lagos State Police Command over alleged robbery operations along the Ife-Ilesha Expressway in Osun State, where five vehicles and valuables estimated at N50m were reportedly stolen.
The suspects were arrested at separate locations in Lagos by
operatives of the command’s Anti-Kidnapping Unit after months of investigation.
The Commissioner of Police, Fatai Tijani, who disclosed on
Friday, October 16, 2026 said that preliminary investigations linked the
suspects to robbery incidents allegedly committed on August 20 and September
20, 2026.
According to him, the arrests followed a directive by the
Inspector-General of Police, Olatunji Disu, to intensify the fight against
criminal activities nationwide.
During interrogation, the suspects reportedly revealed that
they met while serving jail terms at the Kirikiri Correctional Centre in Lagos
and later reunited after their release,” he said.
Ani, an indigene of Ebonyi State and a former clothes
seller, blamed his alleged involvement in robbery on poverty, debts and his
mother’s medical expenses.
He said he returned to his village after his release from
prison in January 2026 but became frustrated by his inability to meet his
mother’s eye surgery expenses, estimated at N800,000, and settle outstanding
debts.
Ani said he subsequently contacted a former prison
acquaintance, identified as Chinedu, who invited him to Lagos and introduced
him to other alleged gang members.
He claimed the gang initially abandoned an attempted robbery
after motorists were alerted to their presence, but later returned to the
highway, where they allegedly dispossessed three men assisting occupants of a
broken-down vehicle of a Toyota Corolla, mobile phones and cash.
He further alleged that the gang later snatched a bus during
heavy rainfall and robbed a vehicle belonging to a traditional ruler.
Ani claimed the monarch and his driver escaped, while the
gang took valuables from the vehicle.
He alleged that he received only N20,000 in two separate
payments as his share of the proceeds from one of the operations.
He also claimed the gang sometimes used sticks wrapped in
sellotape and fireworks to imitate firearms.
Anasihwe, who also previously sold clothes on Lagos Island,
said he met Ani in prison while serving a sentence following a fight with two
passengers during his time as a commercial motorcyclist.
He said they reunited in Ijora after their release and
subsequently participated in a robbery operation.
However, he denied involvement in the robbery involving the
traditional ruler, claiming he had already been arrested.
Meanwhile, investigations were still ongoing to establish
the suspects’ respective roles in the alleged robberies.
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