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From Paul Osuyi, Asaba
For residents of School Boy area and its environs on Ibusa Road extension of Asaba, the capital of Delta State, fear has become their watchword due to the activities of a criminal gang with the named 30 Million Boys.
In large numbers, the gang usually invades homes with handy POS machines to force residents to make transfers. Besides, they cart away valuables, including laptops, phones, television sets and others.
Locals told our correspondent that the gang operates in a bus, and is heavily armed to instill fear in residents. Sources said a number of homes have been robbed in the past few weeks when the gang surfaced from nowhere.
A resident simply identified as Austin said the gang also descended on those who resisted them, adding that some victims sustained injuries in the process.
“They break into the homes of residents, particularly houses that are not fenced. They rob people of their valuables, which they load into their bus unchallenged.
“While some of them are doing that, others with the POS would be forcing occupants to make transfers after inserting a credit card and making the victims type in their secret PIN under duress.
“It is a terrible situation here across the expressway side of Ibusa Road. A lot of accounts have been emptied by these bad guys. We are living in fear in this part of the metropolis, and we urgently need intervention as Christmas is approaching fast,” Austin said.
Another resident, Mrs. Agnes Chukwuedo, a banker, said she was terrified when the hoodlums invaded a nearby house in the neighbourhood, adding that she was lucky that they did not extend it to her home on the fateful night.
“The day they came close to our house, I was very scared because of the way they were hitting the doors of our neighbours to gain access. The sound of their activities was terrifying.
“The luck we had was probably because our house is fenced and the gate is always locked. So, that could have deterred them. But other people in the neighbourhood were not so lucky.
“And I discovered that each time they come around, people will usually call my husband to help them reach the police as if he has access to the police. My husband is like every other citizen,” she said.
Meanwhile, Daily Sun learnt that residents have ostensibly been left to their fate as they alleged that security agents do not respond to distress calls whenever the hoodlums strike.
Mr. Peter Kparobo, who lives in the area, told our correspondent: “We are confused at the moment. Most of us are afraid of going to the police, that is why we have cried to the media to assist us inform the authorities.
“Please, they should come to our aid and address the situation before the trend spreads to other parts of town. When you call the police, they will come late after the gang has successfully operated.
“The other day, when the police came after the hoodlums escaped with their loot, they were telling some persons who had guns to surrender them, as if that was the issue they were called for. It is a sad development.”
However, Mr. Sunday Michael said normalcy seemed to have returned after residents decided to take their destinies in their hands by providing security.
“This whole area, Asaba-Ibusa Expressway after the GSM, the School Boy junction, was being terrorised by those bad guys. They burgled houses, stole plasma television sets. They injured some people.
“They forcefully emptied people’s accounts by transferring money with their POS machine.
“For now, everything is calm but we don’t know what their move will be. We have started our own vigilance group, operating at night, and I think that is why everything is calm at the moment,” he said.
Chairman of the affected area, Nwuobuowu Ekenem, corroborated Michael, saying that men in the area no longer sleep at night in order to ward off the security threat.
“For now, we have started our own security. At night, everybody wakes up to guard themselves because, if we call police, they will not come, they don’t respond to distress calls.
“The hoodlums spend up to three hours operating from door to door. They come with a bus to carry people’s property such as laptops and television sets, while also transferring money with POS machine.
“The other day, the police came to our neighbourhood and asked residents to submit their firearms, which they use in protecting themselves,” he said.
Ekenem said the leadership of the community had not formally reported the matter to the police because of past experiences.
“We have not reported to the police officially. We have their control number, and each time we call them, they would pretend as if they are sleeping.
“There was an incident we had some time ago: They killed somebody and dumped the body within the neighbourhood. We went to the police to report the incident but what they did to us shocked us.
“They asked us to pay for an ambulance to evacuate the body to the mortuary and other expenses. So, going to the police, we don’t fancy it anymore.
“Whenever we go to them, we will spend money. They will be asking for money and will not lift a finger to help remedy the situation. That is why we decided to take our destiny in our own hands.
“So, we have taken some decisions, like now we have agreed to erect a security gate at every street. And at night all men will come out to guard. As time goes on, we will shuffle it so that we can be doing a shift system.
“At the moment, we start by 11pm and close by 5am. For me, the routine is tasking because after that I will go for school runs before going for my normal business. So, it is not easy, it is a tough situation. But the prize for liberty is eternal vigilance,” he said.
When contacted, police public relations officer in the state, Bright Edafe, a deputy superintendent of police, said the command was yet to receive any report on the activities of the gang. He urged residents to report any suspicious movement to the nearest police station for swift action.
Edafe contended that his men would not fold their arms and deliberately watch while residents were being terrorised. He stated that steps would be taken to address the situation.
On the issue of residents surrendering their guns, Edafe recalled that, recently, the command urged those with firearms to come forward and surrender them, as the command took measures to mop up arms in the possession of civilians to reduce security threats.
