The Ogun State Police Community Relations Committee (PCRC), has rewarded five police officers serving in the state for intercepting and arresting suspected assassins – Chigozie Nworie and Kingsley Ofotele, fleeing to Anambra state after a botched assassination bid on a Lagos based businessman, Mr Tochukwu Onyebuchi.
Announcing the reward which comprised of Letter of Commendation and cash gift for each of the officers at the Police Officers’ Mess, Abeokuta, the Ogun state capital, on Saturday, the Chairman of PCRC in Ogun, Alh. Ibraheem Olaniyan, said the officers were honoured for their “patriotism, professionalism and shunning bribe to save the life and property of a crime victim.”
The Commissioner of Police, Ahmed Iliyasu, also said the officers acted in the spirit of the new mantra to the effect that ‘Change begins with me’ of the government at the centre.
The beneficiary – officers including Afoloyan Sunday attached to the Highway unit of the force, turned down the N53,000:00 bribe offered them by Chigozie Nworie and Kingsley Ofotele, last October 20 when they stopped them at the Ijebu – Ode stretch of the Sagamu – Ore expressway for a search while escaping with their victim’s Range Rover Jeep – a Sport Utility Vehicle(SUV).
The two suspects and another yet to be apprehended, attacked their victim, Mr Tochukwu Onyebuchi, in his Compound at Ajah area of Lagos State using cutlass and rods before pouring acid on him, but Tochukwu survived the assassination.
The suspects were allegedly hired by the victim’s wife, Oluchi Onyebuchi, to eliminate him and provided the weapons used by the suspects.
The 32 years old Oluchi, a banker and who is now standing trial before a magistrate court in Lagos, in connection with the crime, allegedly arranged for the cutlass, Iron rod and acid used by the suspects and kept them somewhere in the husband’s compound in Lagos after she had described where the weapons were kept to the assailants.
One of the honoured officer, Afoloyan Sunday, who expressed happiness for being rewarded for doing his job well, said the honour attested to the fact the eyes are watching everyone for any good or evil done by one.
Afoloyan said he and colleagues shunned the N53,000 bribe offered them by the suspects and elected to do their work professionally not knowing that they were helping to save life but also to foil of the theft of the victim’s vehicle worth millions of naira.
“On that fateful day, we stopped the jeep they were driving and asked them to come down. We saw that the side mirror was shattered and one the boys had bruises.
“So, we became more curious and while searching the vehicle, blood stain was seen and the two the suspects were unable to give satisfactory account of themselves and we arrested them.
“We saw many call cards from the jeep and made phone calls to numbers on the cards, and got to know that there was an attack on somebody.
“Further calls revealed the victim and from there we got the assurance that we had suspects in our hands and further investigation led to the arrest of a woman connected to the crime,” Afoloyan said.
