…Says they Were Not Security Operatives but impostors
Police High Command on Thursday paraded 14 suspets over the invasion of the Abuja residence of a Supreme Court Justice, Mary Odili, describing them as impostors who were unknown to any of the nation’s security forces.
Parading the suspets at the Force Headquarters Annex, Abuja, the Force Spokesman, Frank Mba, a Commissioner of Police, CP, said that the 14 suspets and Seven other now at large conspired to raid the residence following information provided by self aclaimed whistle blower that the Supreme Court Justice was keeping a large sum of money in foreign currencies at her residence
This came just as the prime suspet Lawrence Ajodo the fake CSP insisted that he was working for the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice Mallam Abubakarkar Mallami but was not sent to forge the signatures and the documents found on him
Mba stated that following the failed unlawful attempt to raid the residence of the Supreme Court Justice by some people who presented themselves as security agents and members of Asset Recovery Panel from the office of the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, AGF, Mallam Abubakarkar Mallami, the Inspector General of Police IGP, Usman Alkali Baba ordered the Federal Investigaton Bureau, FIB, of the Nigeria Police Force to carry out a comprehensive Investigaton into matter.
He added that AGF, Mallam Abubakarkar Mallami, also petitioned the IGP’ over the unfortunate incident in which called for a through Investigaton as to identities of those behind the illegal act and their motive(s)
Mba further explained that during the course of Investigaton, it was discovered that the act was perpetrated by a syndicate made up characters from various field of endeavors including Journalism, law profession, s Clerk with the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, and the military amongst others
According to him, ” it has been discovered that the failed raid was a well conceived one with many actors and actresses drawn from various endeavors, the man who claimed to be a CSP with the Nigeria Police Force was never a police personnel, the Identity card he was parading was a forged one, the identity card he claimed to have been issued by the AGF Mallam Abubakarkar Mallami was also forged, there is a Journalist, two lawyers and who conspired to carry out the illegal operation
He said that the prime suspet, one Lawrence Ajodo who claimed to be a Chief Supretiedent of Police, CPS, who led the illegal operation porputedly to be operating under Asset Recovery Panel from the office of the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice , was not an officer of the Nigeria Police Force but an impostor .
According to him the fake CSP and his syndicate succeed in security a search warrant for the court after swearing to an affidavit by one Ali Ibrahim, a member of the group who claimed that a huge sum of money in foreign currencies was being kept in the building.
He added that, after this, the syndicate contacted some Operatives of the EFCC, two Soldiers from the Lungi Barracks , Asoko, Abuja a Journalist with a leading Newspaper in the country for the illegal operation after series of meetings where perfected the illegal act.
According to Mba, the syndicate however met the brick wall when the security Operatives attached to the residence of Justice Mary Odili put up resistance and demanded for their true identies and later raised the alarm.
He commended the resistance put up by the security personnel attached to Odili’s residence for not allowing the suspects access to the building on the day of the incident, saying that it would been a greatest embarrassment to the nation before the International community if the operation had succeeded.
Mba who further said that efforts were being stepped up to track down the fleeing members of the Syndicate including two military personnel declared that the suspets would be charge to court on the completion of the ongoing Investigatons for criminal offences ranging from conspiracy, trespass, forgery to accessory amongst others
However, seaking with news men the prime suspet Lawrence Ajodo the fake CSP insisted that he was working for the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice Mallam Abubakarkar Mallami but not sent to forge the signatures and the documents found on him
According to him, ” I work for Mallam Abubakarkar Mallami as a consultant of recoveries, I was given 18 accounts to recover. though Mallami did not send me to this mission. but I am a banking expert with specialty in finance and forensic.
On his own, the Journalist claimed that he was following a story lead on that day based on the clue given to him by one of the arrested lawyers that a raid was going to be carried out by an Asset Recovery Panel under the office of the AGF and that he was not part of the syndicate as being alleged.
Also speaking, the whistle blower Ali Umar Ibrahim, said he was the whistle blower, and that he sworn to an affidavit that there was millions of money in various foreign currencies being starched in the house.
The suspet who claimed to be a prayer warrior said that he was introduced to the godson of Justice Odili and he prayed to know if the story was through and he decided to go through the EFCC as a formal channel, he said he latter ended in the miniustry of Justice. He asked to show the address and that he directed them to Justice Odili’s residence after surveillance
However, reacting to the prime suspet”s claim that he was a consultant to Mallam Abubakarkar Mallami, the Minister dismissed the claim, describing it as “a case of a drowning
man scavenging for a dying partner”
In a statement made available to news men in a swift reaction to the claim by the Special Assistant on Media and Public Relations, Dr. Umar Jibrilu Gwandu, he said that ” it only takes the imagination of the evil minds to assume or think that the Honourable Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice will descend so low to engaging a quack or fake police officer to serve as his consultant”.
The statement reads, “The attention of the Office of the Honourable Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice has been drawn to a confession of a suspect during interrogation in the investigation of the recent invasion of the residencecof the highly respected Justice of the Supreme Court; Justice Mary Peter Odili
“With all the competent, high level professionals and capable human resources available at the disposal of the Honourable Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, it only takes the imagination of the evil minds to assume or think that the Honourable Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice will descend so low to engaging a quack or fake police officer to serve as his consultant
” This is a case of a drowning man scavenging for a dying partner
“We are happy to note that investigation has commenced to unravel the circumstances and personalities behind the invasion and sponsored campaign of calumny against the Honourable Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice
“It is our desire and we hope that the investigation would also disclose those after the Honourable Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, those dragging his personality, his name and his exalted office in the dirty politics of disrepute. This is an orchestrated attempt to stir unnecessary controversies and Public apprehension
“We asked the suspect to present documents of engagements where he worked as a consultant to the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, whether in past or now
“Consultant for what? Which activity or assignment? When was he engaged? What were the terms of references for the alleged consultantancy service? When was he engaged? Where was he engaged? Which work has he executed for the Honourable Attorney General of the Federation and the Ministry of Justice? For what duration? And for how much?
“We boldly and unequivocally challenge the fake consultant/police officer to come out with answers or responses to these questions to the general public.
“The Honourable Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice superintends over and respects the rule of law who will not do anything to undermine the sanctity of his office and that that entire judiciary and Justice sectors”
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