We Formed Our Gang in Prison – Robbery Suspects

Rebecca Ejifoma

Operatives of the Rapid Response Squad (RRS) Lagos State Police Command have arrested two suspects, Simon Tyozemda and Lucky Friday who killed an Uber cab driver.

The suspects were arrested on March 14 when they attempted to kill another Uber cab driver.

According to the Lagos State Commissioner of Police, Imohimi Edgal who paraded the suspects tuesday at the Command Headquarters, Ikeja, said that they formed their robbery gang in Kirikiri Prison.

He identified the suspects as, Simon Tyozemda aged 27 from Benue State and Lucky Friday aged 24 from Delta State. They were arrested on Wednesday, March 14 this year.

He said as at the time they were arrested, the gang members were with two long knives hidden inside a UBER operated cab, a Toyota Camry Saloon with the registration number APP 145 EE, which they planned to kill the driver with and steal.

Edgal said the gang leader, Simon, had through his girlfriend’s UBER app ordered a Taxi at past 11:00 p.m. last week. “The suspects plan was to lure the driver of the Toyota Camry to a desolate location, kill the driver and take away his vehicle.”

The CP said that the suspects were taking the driver to a lonely place on the Lekki-Epe Expressway, Lagos, when their vehicle was stopped by RRS officers for a stop and search.

He said: “The officers noticed one of the suspects seated at the back of the vehicle hiding a long knife. Also, investigations revealed that the suspect’s intention was to divert the driver to a lonely place and snatch his Toyota Camry.

“Further police investigations revealed that the duo ex-convicts who were released between December 2017 and January, 2018, from Kirikiri had sometime in February, 2018, in a similar manner snatched a Taxify Toyota Corolla with registration number, FST 663 EZ along Obadore Road, Ajah at bout 2:00 a.m. after killing its driver.”

He spoke further that the suspects had, after snatching the Toyota Corolla, sold it to one Mohammed Usman for N350,000:00. Adding, he said that Mohammed had only paid N100,000 and was to move the vehicle to Jigawa when RRS Decoy Team arrested him.

In his confessional statement to the police, Simon, a former security guard turned stylist in Badore said: “I met my colleague, Lucky Friday, in Kirikiri Prison. We became friends and when I was released I gave him the number of my brother for him to call me. When he was released, I promised him I was going to assist him to resettle properly. Since then, we have been working and operating together.”

Simon continued that their first operation was where they killed the driver of the Toyota Corolla. “He was a Taxify driver. I stabbed the guy in the stomach twice and I dropped him off the vehicle on the road in Badore, Ajah at past 2:00 a.m. We threw away the knives and bought new ones for the fresh operation we were arrested for”, he added.

He said: “Before killing him, I placed the order to Taxify cab to pick us up at Lambasa, Lekki at past 11:00 p.m. Our destination was Abraham Adesanya Estate but we needed a desolate location to snatch the vehicle from the driver.

Simon confessed that it was the same business that took him to kirikiri prison. “I was introduced into it by Michael. Unfortunately for me, I was arrested while Michael escaped. I spent four months behind bar. It is sad I’m being arrested again over the same business”.