I Used Police Uniform To Smuggle Cars From Benin Republic —Suspect Confesses

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.
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.”