For the residents of Meiran, Agbado/ Oke Odo Local Council Development Area of Lagos State, it has been weeks of agony since a gang of robbers stormed the area in a house-to-house robbery.
The distraught residents and victims of the robbery attacks urged the police and other security agents to come to save them from the robbers boys.
It was learnt that the hoodlums first attacked residents in their homes late last year, during which many people were brutalized and dispossessed of their valuables, especially cash and mobile telephones.
It was said that the robbers almost raped a girl last year when they struck in the community.
Some of the affected streets in the areas include, Eshilo, Bada, Adeyemi, Iyo, Oladimeji and Alhaji Sanni streets, among others.
In the latest attack, which happened penultimate week, a couple was said to have lost a sum of N85,000 to the robbery gang comprising young boys, who stormed the area with bags strapped to their back and armed with dangerous weapons including guns and machetes.
A man suspected to be an internet fraudster was said to have been brutalized by the robbers after he claimed that he had no money at home, when the robbers broke into his apartment.
The robbers who were about 15 in number, according to sources, operated for more than three hours and waited for few minutes to take an inventory of their loot before they left.
‘’The boys (robbers) were about 15 in number and one of them was hooded. They pulled down the burglar-proof of an apartment when the occupant refused to open his door for the robbers. When they eventually forced their way into the man’s room, they brutalized him and he almost passed out.
It was said that the robbers returned few days ago but were repelled by residents who kept vigil in their neighborhood.
A source who asked not to be named said: ‘’The robbers were mainly young boys and they dealt with us when they first struck late last year. During that attack, they robbed me of my phones and cash and also took away thousands of naira from my wife.
‘’They pulled down the door to my room and slapped me severally. They also robbed other apartments in my building and one of their victims was mercilessly beaten up when he told the robbers he had no money at home. His phone and laptop was however carted away by the hoodlums.
‘’Unfortunately, one of us who alerted the police at Meiran Division on the telephone, while the operation was going on was told not to further raise the alarm since his house was not being attacked.’’
Another victim, who also spoke in confidence said the robbers were still operating in the area unabated. ‘’They came back last week but we prevented them from operating because we had already started keeping vigilance outside our homes. The robbers numbering over 15 came on three motorcycles and when we stopped them, one of them brought out a pistol and attempted to shoot one of us. Luckily, the trigger failed and we all fled in different directions while the hoodlums too bolted from the area immediately.’’
In the wee hours of last Friday, the robbers again struck at a one-storey building on Alhaji Sanni carting away gadgets including Ipad, phones and unspecified cash.
‘’The boys scaled the fence into the building from the back and tore the window net through which they rob the occupants of electronic gadgets, bags and undisclosed ash.
‘’They even fruitlessly tried to vandalized a Toyota car parked inside the compound, but no one was hurt as the occupants of the building had locked up themselves in the toilet,’’ said a source.
The Nation also gathered that the robbers have since resorted to early morning raid on residents who leave home at dawn for work.
‘’It got so bad that a resident ran back home two days ago after she was waylaid by the robbers at dawn while she was on her way to work. We are using this opportunity to call on the police to step up patrol in this area, because we now live in fear of the heartless boys.’’
A community leader in the area, Mr Tosin Olorundare called on the state government and the police to stop incessant robbery operations in the community.
He said: ‘’ We can no longer sleep with our two eyes closed because of the robbers’ siege to our community and it is really sad that the law enforcement agents have not been forthcoming in saving us from robbery attacks.
We are calling on the Lagos State government and the state police command to pit in place adequate measures to protect and save us from continuous robbery attacks, a as well as protect lives and property in this community.
‘’ In broad daylight, you will see these boys smoking Indian hemp and by nightfall or in the wee hours, they would become something else. We therefore want the police to increase its surveillance and patrol of our neighbourhood in order to keep the robbers in check.’’
He noted that people now live in fear of the hoodlums who prowl the community for victims unhindered.
Contacted, the Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO) of Lagos State Police Command, Mr Chike Oti said the police had been proactive in combating criminal activities in the area as well as ensuring protection of lives and property.
‘’ Operatives of the divisional police headquarters at Meiran, according to the Divisional Police Officer (DPO) have constantly been arresting criminals in the community. There are however times when robbery alarms were raised by people only for the police to discover the alarms were false,’’he said.