The Lagos State Police Command has arrested a 46-year-old man who masquerades as an Assistant Commissioner of Police.
He was arrested in connection with the recovery of two stolen cars found in his possession.
The suspect, a father of five, identified as Alexander Abiodun was arrested in Ijoko area of Ogun State following a confessional statement of an arrested robbery suspect.
The robbery suspect identified as Gabriel Asaolu, who was discovered to be a pastor of an undisclosed church in Ogun State, was alleged to have stolen exotic cars from Ogun and Lagos states.
During interrogation, Asaolu reportedly mentioned Abiodun as one of the receivers, which made the Lagos State Commissioner of Police, Umar Manko, to direct operatives of the Special Anti-Robbery Squad, SARS, to go after him.
Police sources said when the operatives stormed Abiodun’s home at 29, Okegbale Street, in Ijoko, Ogun State, one of the stolen cars, a Toyota Avalon, was recovered. Also recovered in his apartment were Police uniforms with the rank of an Assistant Commissioner of Police and Deputy Superintendent of Police.
Police sources said: “When asked if he was a policeman, he shook his head. Also, an unregistered Acura Legend car suspected to have been stolen, was found in his residence.
During an earlier interrogation, Asaolu confessed that he sold two stolen vehicles— a Mitsubuishi Montero SUV and a Toyota Avalon car— to Abiodun. But only one of the vehicles was found in Abiodun’s residence while the other was said to have been involved in an accident in Ondo State.
I used Police uniform to smuggle cars from Benin Republic
—Suspect
During interrogation, Abiodun said he did not belong to any robbery gang but that he only used the police uniform to smuggle cars from Benin Republic.
According to him, “I got the uniform from a friend named Segun and I used it to smuggle cars from Benin Republic because I am a car dealer.
“All I do whenever I am going to get cars from Cotonou is to hang the ACP uniform in the car. That way, Customs officers, policemen and other security agents would not disturb me along the border because they would assume I am a senior Police officer.
“I knew Gabriel about four years ago as a Pastor of a church in Oke-Aro, Ogun State,where I had gone for a revival programme.
“During a chat with him, he told me he was also a car dealer and would be supplying cars to me at cheaper rate.
“In August 2011, he called to say he had some cars for sale and sold a Toyota Avalon car for N750,000. That was the only car I bought from him and I never knew he was a robber.”
Training of private guards
The father of five also revealed that apart from using the uniform to smuggle cars, he also used it to train private security guards, with their management staff assuming he was a serving officer.
He said: “I have trained several private company guards as policemen. I got all the training idea during discussions with serving security personnel.
“This is another way I generate money to take care of my family. I have never stolen with the uniforms since I started using them.”
