•RRS recovers eight vehicles from him
He lived big for years on ill-gotten wealth. He built a block of two flats and an eight-room bungalow from the proceeds of car theft. Last Friday, the bubble burst when Samuel Adebeshin, 56, was arrested by policemen from Lagos in his Abeokuta, Ogun State home.
Rapid Response Squad (RRS) operatives tracked a stolen grey Toyota Corolla to his 13, Kobape Road, Abeokuta home in the early hours of that fateful day.
The RRS operatives were looking for the car, which was stolen from where it was parked in the Ikeja Central Business District on Thursday.
A statement yesterday by the RRS said the 2004 Toyota Corolla model with number-plate KRD 759 belonging to Mrs Olaitan Lawal was removed from a church car park around 6pm on Thursday before it was found shortly after midnight on Friday.
The RRS quoted Mrs Lawal as saying: “I took my car to the church and I parked it at the space designated for parking. After the church service, I went back to pick my car to go home, but I couldn’t find the car. Immediately, I called Lagos emergency line on 112 and I reported to the representative. I also went straight to Area F in Ikeja, to equally lodge a complaint. At the station, the Divisional Police Officer (DPO) connected me with the RRS Commander, Olatunji Disu, an Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP).
“When I called him (Disu), he assured me that my car would be found. By this time, it was around 9pm. At home, I couldn’t sleep until around, 12:15 a.m. after midnight when I saw the Commander’s call requesting that I describe my car. I gave him, and he told me that he had found my car somewhere in Abeokuta. I couldn’t believe my ears. In about six hour’s interval, my car was found.”
According to RRS, its surveillance tracked the car to Abeokuta that night and arrested Adebeshin and Kamoru Adeyemi, 50, who confessed to stealing it and seven other cars now at the RRS headquarters at Alausa, Ikeja.
Adebeshin, the RRS claimed, maintained that the eight vehicles were stolen at different locations in Lagos.
He reportedly told RRS that he has been in auto business for 30 years, saying: “I know all these cars brought to me were all stolen but I thought I was safe enough here in my palatial compound. About two years ago, I met Kamoru Adeyemi. He was the middleman between me and the car thieves. He was the one who introduced one Tajudeen Bello and one honourable, both still at large, to me as car dealers and crossers from Benin Republic. “Later on, I discovered they were car snatchers from Lagos. At this point, I couldn’t back out from the deal. Anytime they bring cars to me, it was Adeyemi who I give money to pay them because I didn’t want people to identify me with them
“In 2014, I bought one Honda from them at N300,000, but its market value was around N900,000 then. The money was given to Adeyemi. I later sold the car for N450,000 six months after. Also, in January 2015, I bought another Honda Accord 2000 model from them again; I also paid the thieves through our middleman, Adeyemi”.
The suspect, who has two wives and seven children, added: “I built my first house, an 8 room-bungalow in 2006, and the second one, two flats in 2015 where I keep the stolen vehicles as they arrive from Lagos. Once they bring the cars for me, we would repaint them, change their number plates and chassis numbers, and take them to neighbouring countries for sale.
“Occasionally, I sold to people at my car mart, S. Aro Motors situated at 1, Kuto Road, Isabo, Abeokuta. Around 5pm on Thursday, Adeyemi called me that our boys have brought another Toyota Corolla for sale. By this time, I wasn’t at home, but I instructed my first son to open the gate for them. The car was parked in my premises, awaiting the usual refurbishment and painting.
“However, around 12:30am, a team of policemen came to my house and asked me to give account of the Toyota Corolla car. I opened up to them. I told them that all those involved are Adeyemi, Tajudeen Bello and Honourable. They brought all those cars to me. I took the police to Adeyemi’s residence where he was arrested while others are still at large.”
Adeyemi told RRS that he met Adebeshin some years ago. He said: “Before now, I do assist him to cross vehicle from Benin to Nigeria. Anytime those boys went for operation and succeeded, they will call me, and I will inform him that we have another car. And I will drive the car to his premises in Kobape where buyers usually come to buy them.
“In any deal we do, they paid me N30,000. On this day, one of the car snatchers called me to meet them at Sagamu interchange. On getting there, I found out that they have another stolen car.
“I led them from Sagamu interchange to Adebesin’s house. This was the first time I will be arrested in connection with stolen cars. It was poverty and frustration that led me to this criminal act”.
The other vehicles recovered from Adebeshin’s compound were Mercedes Benz 230; Acura MDX; Murano Sport Utility Vehicle (SUV), Volkswagen Passat station wagon, Renault, Pontiac and Toyota Camry.
Police spokesperson Dolapo Badmos, a Superintendent (SP), said the suspects were helping the police with investigations.
She added that efforts were on to arrest the fleeing members of the syndicate.