Christopher Oji
A notorious cult leader in the Bariga area of Lagos State, known in the underworld as Tunder Balogun, has been arrested by the police.
Tunder Balogun was arrested along with 38 other members of his group in Bariga by a police outfit code-named Operation Crush.
Also, the command apprehended three members of a traffic robbery gang that usually attacked female drivers during gridlocks. The gang’s mode of operation was to snatch expensive jewelry, including rings, which they would swallow to avoid being detected by the police. The gang members knew what they would do to vomit the jewelry later.
Speaking on the arrest of the cultists, police public relations officer in the state, DSP Bala Elkalna, said, acting on credible intelligence, the Operation Crush team attached to Bariga Police Station, led by the divisional police officer, raided a cultists’ hideouts in Bariga.
Elkana said the operation, which lasted exactly three hours, succeeded in apprehending Balogun, a notorious cultist, and 18 other members of his gang.
He said in a follow-up operation on June 15, from 5.30pm to 10.11pm, 12 other suspects were arrested.
Elkana said: “On June 12, at about 3am, operatives of Operation Crush from the anti-cultism unit, led by CSP Frank Nelson, stormed cultists’ hideouts at Oshodi, where Balogun, 28, a cult leader, and three members of his gang were arrested. Two automatic guns were recovered from them.
“ Investigation led the team to the Mangoro area, Dopemu, Agege, at about 7am, where Segun and one other member of their gang were arrested. One Jojeff pump-action gun was recovered.
“Acting on credible intelligence, Operation Crush from Marogbo police station, led by the DPO, arrested two cult leaders, Ifon and Oti. In their hideouts along Badagry Expressway, four locally made pistols were recovered. The suspects confessed to be members of ‘Eiye’ and ‘Aiye’ confraternities.
“In another development, a traffic robber who swallowed her victim’s wedding ring after threatening to kill her, along with three other suspected traffic robbers, were at the weekend arrested by the operatives of the Rapid Response Squad of the Lagos State Command in Oshodi and CMS part of the metropolis.”
The suspect who swallowed the ring , Adebayo, 19, along with an accomplice, Tijani, 20 , were arrested at Oshodi – Oke shortly after dispossessing two ladies occupying a grey Sienna bus of a gold ear ring and a set of wedding rings.
During interrogation , Adebayo said : “I swallowed the ring ,but I have vomited it and handed it over to Young Boy , the third guy in the gang when the police were chasing us. I told him to hand over the rings to the ladies so that the police would release us but he absconded with the two rings and earring”.