Tayo Ogunbiyi
Inspector General of Police, Solomon Arase
It was like a scene from a typical Nollywood movie. The setting was the ever busy Ojodu-Berger axis of the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway. It was in the evening and traffic was expectedly heavy. Vehicular movement was almost at a standstill. The intermittent outpouring of rains complicated the situation for motorists and commuters. This, coupled with the irritating blaring of horns by obviously agitated and exhausted motorists, gave rise to a feeling that hell was already let loose. Suddenly, in the midst of the whole confusion, a skinny teenager, obviously using the sale of ‘gala’ to conceal his actual mission, dipped his hand into the dash board of one of the vehicles that was trapped in the gridlock. With the dexterity of a professional thief, he made away with a cell phone and wallet stuffed with cash. The whole episode did not last for more than 30 seconds. It was so quick that it left both the victim and other motorists and commuters in the gridlock deeply bewildered. Before anyone could say jack, the boy had dashed to the other side of the road and vanished into thin air. Welcome to the world of Lagos traffic robbers!
In recent time, there has been an upsurge in the incidence of traffic robbery in Lagos State. The barefaced audacity with which these criminals perpetrate their evil act has become a source of great worry to commuters, motorists and residents alike. Some of the hoodlums who carry out the act occasionally place themselves on both sides of busy Lagos roads and attack unsuspecting motorists. Their mode of operation varies, depending on the exigency of the moment. Sometimes, they could bang on the vehicles of unwary motorists in order to lure them out of the car before pouncing …Read More
Source:: PM Newspaper
