The Osun State Police Command has arrested four suspected members of a motorcycle theft gang that has been operating between Osogbo in Osun State and Ibadan in Oyo State.
The arrest was confirmed in a statement on Tuesday by the Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Abiodun Ojelabi.
He said the suspects were caught after a detailed operation by the Commissioner of Police’s Monitoring Unit.
“The arrest followed a report that one of the suspects was caught with a Bajaj Boxer motorcycle with registration number EDT 155 QF, which was stolen from where the owner parked it,” Ojelabi said.
He explained that during the investigation, police recovered two other motorcycles — a TVS and another Bajaj — from the same suspect.
“The suspect confessed that he is part of a syndicate that specialises in stealing motorcycles from where they are parked,” the statement added.
Later that same day, around 8:30 pm, officers moved to the Shasha area in Osogbo, where they arrested another suspect, 38-year-old Hammed Jelili, in his hideout. Six spare motorcycle keys used for their operations were found with him.
The police then extended their investigation to the Brewery area of Ibadan, where they arrested 64-year-old Oguntade Segun, who was the buyer of the stolen motorcycles.
According to the police, Segun confessed to buying four different motorcycles from the gang for prices ranging from ₦250,000 to ₦300,000 each.
Another suspect, 30-year-old Arobadi Michael, who reportedly delivered the stolen motorcycles to Segun, was also arrested.
Ojelabi said all four suspects would be charged to court after the investigation is complete.
He also urged anyone whose motorcycle was stolen or snatched in recent times to visit the CP’s Monitoring Unit at the State Headquarters in Osogbo for identification.
