The Ogun State Police Command on Sunday said it had rescued a suspected robber, Adebayo Okokiola, who specialised in robbing PoS agents from a mob attack in the Awowo area of Ewekoro Local Government Area of the state.
PUNCH Metro learnt in a telephone conversation with the command’s Public Relations Officer, Omolola Odutola, on Sunday, that the 21-year-old suspect was caught on Friday by the mob after he had allegedly robbed a Point of Sale operator.
The PPRO noted that the suspect had gone to the POS lady for withdrawal of cash and in the process attacked the lady, attempted to strangulate her and fled with the lady’s purse containing the sum of N100,000.
Upon fleeing the scene, some residents of the community gave him a chase and caught him. Angered by the suspect’s action, the mob was said to have attempted to lynch him before the police intervention.
The PPRO stressed, “Initial investigations indicated that Okokiola had approached a PoS operator at Awowo to withdraw N20,000, along with a service fee of N800.
“He also bought a soft drink for N450 and sachet water for N50, intending for these expenses to be deducted from his alleged account.
“While alone with the PoS operator, he feigned making a money transfer before attacking her, strangling her, and stealing her purse, which contained N100,000. He fled the scene but was later captured.
“Further inquiries revealed that Okokiola had been staying at Mingles Hotel in Unity Estate along Onigbedu/Itori Road since December 9, 2024. He paid N4,000 every 24 hours until December 25, 2024, when he switched rooms for a rate of N6,000 per day.”
Following his arrest, the police team recovered several exhibits in his possession and the suspect was said to have confessed to the crime.
She added that the hotel’s receptionist was also arrested in connection with the incident.
Odutola narrated, “Detectives, under police direction, searched Okokiola’s hotel room and discovered six SIM cards from various telecom providers and three ATMs for which he could not offer a plausible explanation. These items were seized for additional investigation.
“Adeyanju Abayomi, a 28-year-old male receptionist at Mingles Hotel, was arrested during the investigation. Okokiola admitted to the crime. The suspects and the evidence will be handed over to the State CID for further investigation
“The girl he strangulated survived and received treatment. Okokiola is a notorious criminal who attacks unsuspecting POS operators, especially females and sometimes through fake alerts.”
The PPRO urged the public especially PoS operators to be mindful of the likes of Okokiola when carrying out transactions.
