The Lagos State Police Command has arrested two suspected members of a vehicle vandalism syndicate allegedly operating across the state for about 10 years.
The suspects, identified as 46-year-old Uba Chigozie and 37-year-old Onyeka Emordi, were arrested by operatives of the command’s Anti-Kidnapping Unit under the supervision of CSP Sunday Cirman. The police said they were also searching for other members of the syndicate.
According to police sources, the gang allegedly targeted mainly Toyota vehicles, including Corolla, Sienna and Hilux models, particularly cars parked along roadsides or those that had broken down.
The suspects allegedly specialised in removing valuable vehicle components, including brain boxes, press-button machines, pigeon holes and air-conditioning vents. Police sources said the gang could strip a vehicle of some of its valuable parts within about 10 minutes and make as much as N100,000 from some operations.
Chigozie, a former spare-parts dealer at the Papa Ajao Spare Parts Market, was reportedly arrested at a hotel in the Ijesha area of Lagos, where he had been staying for about four months.
During questioning, Chigozie allegedly confessed to participating in vehicle vandalism for about a decade. He attributed his involvement to financial difficulties following the demolition of his spare-parts shop at the Papa Ajao market.
He reportedly told investigators that he later went to Ladipo Auto Spare Parts Market to look for work, where he met a man identified as Oba, whom he alleged introduced him to vehicle vandalism.
Chigozie said the gang sold vandalised brain boxes for about N40,000 and press-button machines for N10,000. He added that his share from some operations reached N100,000, although the amount varied from one operation to another.
Emordi, who was reportedly introduced to the crime in 2022 after losing his job as a casual driver at a flour mill in Lagos, also described how the gang operated.
He said members lived in different parts of Lagos but converged at agreed locations before moving to areas where they had identified vehicles to target. Their preferred vehicles, he said, included Toyota Sienna, Corolla and Hilux models.
Emordi also claimed that the gang did not use firearms during their operations. Instead, he said, members used a Mercedes-Benz jack that had been modified to resemble a gun to intimidate people who confronted them.
The suspects reportedly sold the stolen vehicle components to buyers dealing in used and stolen spare parts.
The Lagos State Police Public Relations Officer, Abimbola Adebisi, confirmed the arrests and said the command was pursuing other members of the syndicate.
Adebisi warned criminal elements operating in the state to desist from their activities, saying the police would continue efforts to dismantle criminal networks and improve security across Lagos.
The arrests are part of the police command’s efforts to curb vehicle vandalism and other forms of property-related crime in Lagos. The allegations against the suspects remain subject to investigation and possible prosecution before a court.
