The alleged syndicate’s leader, Alhaji Isah Mustapha ( 51), his gate man and an electrician suspected to be hired to disconnect car tracking devices in vehicles, were arrested in Mustapha`s compound at Phase 1, Gwagwalada.
Mustapha, who claimed to be a level 16 officer at NNPC Suleja, said he received N500,000 from one Bashiru to keep vehicles in his compound and does not belong to any car snatching business in the area.
He said the Hilux van is the third vehicle kept under his custody by Bashiru, adding that a man normally comes from Niger Republic to carry the vehicles there under armed escort of mobile policemen.
When the police conducted a search at the suspect’s Gwagwalada residence, five other exotic cars were recovered, which he said are his personal cars.
Reacting, Gwagwalada Divisional Police Officer, Chief Superintendent Charles Mozie confirmed the arrest, and said he sent policemen to the suspect’s compound, following information received from a car tracking company.
According to him, the policemen swung into immediate action and arrested the syndicate members as they tried to escape after sighting the police.
He said investigation into the matter would continue until the whereabouts of Bashiru, the chief suspect, is ascertained.
Meanwhile, driver of the Hilux van, Goodluck, said the van was snatched from him at gun point at Gwagwalada, after his assailants threatened to kill him.
Also speaking, Revolution Exclusive Nigeria Limited’s Managing Director, Mr Oje Okosun, confirmed that all the company’s vehicles are tracked for security purposes.
He said as soon as he could not hear from the driver, he checked the tracking ‘GPRS Machine’ and discovered that the car was driving above 160 kilometres, which was very unusual, before they discovered the car inside the suspect’s house at Gwagwalada.
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Gwagwalada police nab car snatching syndicate