TO Oyo State police command, there is more to the arrest of armed robbery suspects, Goke Ojo and Sunday Adegbite, who were among suspects paraded at the police headquarters, Eleyele, Ibadan, recently.

While the deputy commissioner of police Oyo State, Clement Adoda, who stood in for the commissioner, Mr Tambari Yabo Mohammed, was addressing journalists at the police headquarters, Ibadan, Ojo and Adegbite were busy arguing outside over one of the exhibits on display outside the hall.

Adegbite, who resided in Lagos, but used to come for robbery operations in Ibadan claimed that it was Ojo that sold a pistol he was using for robbery to him at the rate of N20,000, an allegation which Ojo vehemently denied, denying being involved in gun business not to talk of selling one to Adegbite. He even said he was an easy going fellow at Olunloyo area, Ibadan where he resided and that there was never a

time that he was a member of the Odua Peoples Congress (OPC).

In an interview with Crime and Security, Ojo, who said he was a motor boy with a popular construction company in Ibadan, maintained that though he knew Adegbite, he never sold gun to him.

Ojo, who intermittently meditated and asked rhetorically who could be the source of the misfortune that had befallen him said "I am never a member of the OPC and I don't have anything to do with gun. There is no way I coud have sold gun to him.

"What's my offence? Who will save me from this calamity? This is more than a set up. I've always been an easy going fellow in the area, I don't deserve this," he said as he continued to raise different posers for those living in the same environment with him.
In his reaction, 32-year-old Adegbite, who said he was formerly working as motor boy with a company, said he got to know Ojo through

another colleague in the area known as 'Baba Orobo'. Adegbite said it was "Baba Orobo'" that informed him that Ojo could help him get a gun. On getting what he wanted, Ojo said he went for operation at a fish depot, his second operation in Ibadan, thinking things would be okay afterwards.

"This is just my second outing and that's why I'm appealing to Ojo to stop pretending and let us plead if someone will have mercy on us and plead on our behalf. I'm surprised that he (Ojo) is now denying me, denying that he is a member of the OPC."

Though Adegbite remained adamant that Ojo was an OPC member and that he sold the gun to him for N20,000, through a carpenter who linked them. He said he decided to look elsewhere to make quick cash when things became difficult for him. For Ojo, no amount of punishment would make him confess a sin he never committed, but what drew the attention of the police officers who brought them from the State Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS), Ibadan, was the way and manner which Adegbite consistently interjected Ojo's plea.

Adegbite kept on telling Ojo that whated they need stolen compassion that they were both guilty of the offence.

With this development, the police might be tasked with the responsibility of unravelling the cause of disagreement between the two suspects.

Police sources, who pleaded anonymity, disclosed that "the police would continue investigation on the matter but added that the police had not arrested an innocent person in Goke Ojo. It was Sunday Adegbite who was caught during a robbery operation that mentioned Ojo's name when he was interrogated and you can see that Adegbite never denied that.

"However, like both have said that people in their area can testify to their different explanations, police will expand its searchlight on the area to unravel the fact," the source hinted.

The deputy commissioner of police Oyo State, Clement Adoda, while describing how the suspects were nabbed said:

"Upon a distress call received from members of the public, that five armed men on two motorcycles had stormed a Fish Depot at Ode – Aje, Oloolu area of Ibadan, the policemen of Agugu Division stormed the scene.

"The armed men visited the fish depot and posed as prospective customers to the Manager of the fish depot who they later robbed of the sum of N538,000.00, at gun point. The quick intervention of the Police in collaboration with ‘Vigilante’ men of the area, led to the arrest of one of the gang members named Sunday Adegbite and the money was recovered from him.

"Also recovered from him was one locally made pistol with nine rounds of live cartridges including one fired cartridge in the chamber of the gun," Adoda said.

He revealed that "further investigation by policemen from SARS led to the arrest of one Olagoke Ojo the supplier of the gun to the armed robbers.

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