Police arrest ‘one-chance’ gang member, suspected dealer of fake spirits in Lagos

Operatives of the Lagos Rapid Response Squad (RRS) have apprehended a suspected member of a four-man ‘one-chance’ (robbery) gang and recovered their operational vehicle, a Toyota Camry (1999 model).

The suspect, James Aniyah, 48, was arrested around 8:00 p.m. on Monday near MKO Abiola Garden, Ojota. He was found in the car alongside a female victim who had allegedly been abducted earlier at Allen Roundabout, Ikeja.

According to the police, the victim was lured into the gang’s vehicle under the guise of heading to Mowe-Ibafo, Ogun State. Once inside, the gang demanded her phone and other belongings.

In a separate incident, the RRS arrested a suspected dealer of counterfeit expensive spirits, Nworie Benjamin, 40, after about five months on the run. The suspect was first sighted in September 2024 in Maryland, Lagos, with cartons of empty bottles of premium alcohol but managed to escape, abandoning the items.

Benjamin was finally apprehended on Monday night, and a search of his shop in Ikeja led to the recovery of several exhibits of expensive wine bottles suspected to be fake.

Both suspects, along with the recovered exhibits, have been handed over to the Lagos State Command in Ikeja and the State Criminal Investigation Department (SCID) in Panti for further investigation.