Ex-DSS Officer, Nine Others Arrested Over Alleged Bullion Van Robbery In Abia

A former personnel of the Department of State Services (DSS), Prosper Israel, along with nine other suspected robbers were on Monday paraded by the Abia State Police Command.

The suspects were arrested as part of the 14-man robbery gang that ambushed a bullion van near the Ntigha junction of the Enugu-Port Harcourt Expressway on July 26, 2022.

The hoodlums killed the cash officer of a new generation bank and three Police officers were severely injured during the attack.

An unspecified amount of cash which was being transported with the bullion van was also stolen by the robbers.

Parading the suspects, Commissioner of Police, Janet Agbade, said their arrest was the reward for months of painstaking efforts and investigation.

“I carefully studied their modus operandi and set up a special intelligence technologically-led Investigative squad ( ITLIS) with a clear directive to arrest and recover weapons used by the deadly armed robbery gang”, the CP said.

"Consequently, the Investigation used systematically commenced operation, applying speed and accuracy, and on different locations and days, arrested the following callous armed robbery gang”, she added.

The police boss gave the names of the suspects as Adesoji Adeniyi from Ondo State; Nnamdi Nwaosu a.k.a “Prophet”; Chinwendu Israel from Abia; and Prosper Israel ( ex – DSS personnel), also from Abia.

Others were Nwachukwu Albert a.k.a White (first armourer) from Delta State but resident in Lagos; Felix Ajaja from Ondo State; Moshood Opeyemi, from Osun State; and Matthew Christmas also from Delta.

Among the suspects also were Azubuike Amaefula a.k.a Zubby from Abia, and Monday Samuel (second armourer) from Delta but resident in Ondo State.

Exhibits recovered from the suspects include one General Purpose Machine Gun ( GPMG); 13 AK 47 riffles; one cut-to-size double barrel gun with five live cartridges; 84 AK 47 magazines.

Others were two improvised explosives dynamites; a Mercedes Benz mini truck used in concealing firearms; and cash of N10, 184,000.

The CP who said that efforts were on to trail three other members of the gang still at large, pleaded with members of the public to always volunteer information about suspected criminals around them.