Confessions of car thieves

• How we steal vehicles in Abuja, sell to dealers in Kaduna, Kano

From Molly Kilete, Abuja

It was the end of the road for a gang of car thieves terrorising residents of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja, and environs. The group of nine resident in Nasarawa State usually drove into the FCT, broke into homes, stole cars and sold them off cheaply to their accomplices on standby to buy the cars and other valuables from them.

The group also specialised in breaking into wine shops, nightclubs, music studios and electronics shops, among others, to steal expensive items and sell at give-away prices. Gang members also stole inverter batteries, borehole pumping machines, generators, laptops and others.

Their activities, however, came to an end after they broke into a home in Jikwoyi, carting away personal belongings, an unspecified sum of money and a Toyota Corolla vehicle with registration number KUJ 549 CW. The victim reported the matter to the police. Within nine days, the suspects were arrested while cooling off at a popular joint enjoying their loot.

They were found to be in possession of four television sets, five HP laptops, two Lenovo laptops, one Zinox laptop, one Dell laptop, two generators, two solar batteries, one pumping machine, one DJ mixer machine, four club lights, one speaker, 10 bottles of Lambrusco wine, 60 bottles of red wine, one GOtv decoder, one knife, one cooking gas cylinder, one LG home theatre, one grey Toyota Camry with registration number MUS 234 CW, one ash Toyota Corolla with registration number KUJ 549 CW and one ash-coloured Toyota Camry with registration number MKD 372 AU.

The suspects included Mohammed, Abubakar, Isah, Nura, John, Augustin, Musbau, Innocent and Usman. They confessed to the crimes, revealing how they sold stolen cars and other items at give-away prices to receivers who always had cash with them. They usually sold Toyota Corolla and Toyota Camry for between N550,000 andN650,000.

One of the suspects, Musbau, said they sold cheaply because their customers usually came with cash. They usually drove the cars to Kaduna and Kano states to meet with the buyers: “These receivers are mostly car dealers who buy the cars, do body work, change the colours and sell them to innocent buyers in return.

“Sometimes they just dismantle the entire car and sell the parts to unsuspecting car owners and fellow dealers. They also rush to sell the vehicles because they don’t have a place to park them for too long so as not to attract suspicion.

“We have made huge profits from robbery. I joined the group due to the harsh economic conditions in the country. I was a trader before joining the group. I used to sell provisions but there was no market. I wasn’t making any profit, while some of the items I sold expired in my shop.

“While still thinking of what to do, one of my friends, Abubakar, approached me. He told me about the business and I joined immediately. In our first operation, we stole two cars and other items. We parked the cars and the other things for like three days at a safe location before driving down to Kano and Kaduna to sell them.

“On my first outing with the gang, I got N150,000 cash. I was very happy because I hadn’t seen that kind of money in years. It was after that operation that I made up my mind to do it full-time.

“I was able to buy a lot of land in my village and I built a small house. I also opened a big shop where I sell provisions and foodstuffs. I was planning g to buy a keke, which I have even started paying for, before we were arrested.

“I really do not regret going into robbery even though I know that it is bad. I didn’t have anything at that time. Those I was counting on for help treated me like a leper. So, when my friend approached me and I made that big money on our first operation, I felt good with myself. I started feeling big before those who treated me poorly when I begged for help from them.”

Police said the suspects would be charged to court as soon as investigations were concluded: “We are intensifying efforts to arrest the receivers of the stolen goods.”