An Ex-Policeman, Michael Adikwu, was among the 4 men wanted for their part in the notorious Offa robbery that claimed many lives and has now been arrested.
Adikwu was attached to the Special Anti-Robbery Squad of the state command and was dismissed in 2012 by the Kwara State Police Command after it was alleged that he helped some robbers escape.
Adikwu was arrested on Tuesday in a town in Kwara State by the DCP Abba Kyari-led IRT operatives who hit the jackpot thanks to a tip-off after the photos of the suspects were released to the public.
The Offa robbery had affected 5 banks and while the official number of people killed is placed at 17, in some quarters that number has been suggested to be much, much higher.
According to the Punch, a police source gave some background on Adikwu and how he was initially dismissed from the force.
“He (Adikwu) was a SARS operative at the Kwara State Police Command. He used to fraternise with robbers. There was a robbery that happened in Kwara State about six years ago. The robbers killed somebody and escaped. The police were able to arrest those robbers.
“He collected money from those robbery suspects and released them. Later, the robbers were rearrested and they confessed that he aided their escape. He was arrested, tried in an orderly room trial and dismissed.
“He was charged to court together with the robbery suspects and was in prison for three years. He and some of the robbers were able to manoeuvre their way out of the prison and formed a robbery gang.”
A Source for the Punch also added: “The lead was given to the police by an informant. His hideout was cordoned off and he was arrested. He was apprehended by the IRT operatives in a community in Kwara State,”