A daring, intelligence-led police operation has brought down one of Nigeria’s most notorious interstate car theft syndicates, with 12 suspects in custody and 22 stolen vehicles recovered.
Rivers State Police Command spokesperson, SP Grace Iringe-Koko, said the breakthrough followed the September 2024 theft of a Toyota Hiace bus in Onne. Tracking the culprits led the C4i Strike Force/Octopus team into a sprawling criminal network operating across Rivers, Anambra, Taraba, Enugu, Borno, Kano, Delta, and Akwa Ibom.
According to the statement, Two ex-convicts — John Amadi (40) and Nna Goodluck (45) — were allegedly hired by Godspower Okpa to steal vehicles with hammers, earning ₦90,000 each per job.
Among others arrested the statement explained further were Yakubu Abdullah (35), nabbed in Obibo during a pickup, Abdulkareem Saminu (35), caught with two stolen cars and Adamu Musa, a dismissed police officer, found with 11 stolen vehicles
According to the Statement, the gang’s mastermind, Falco Ibrahim, remained at large.
In Port Harcourt, liaison man Onyekachi Igwe confessed to making over ₦5 million in eight months.
The syndicate also relied on auto electricians Ikechukwu Joseph and Michael Emerenwa to modify vehicles for export
Self-styled pastor Elijah Nwauwa Sunday to broker sales at Onitsha’s Mgbuka-Obosi market, Samuel Ejigbo, an ex-convict and field operator in Port Harcourt and Umar Jabbo, caught trying to buy a stolen Toyota Camry
“We are determined to make Rivers a no-go zone for organised crime,” Iringe-Koko vowed. “All suspects will face prosecution, and the hunt for the ringleader continues.”
Police are urging residents to stay alert and report suspicious activity, stressing that public vigilance is vital in dismantling criminal networks.