Police arrest pickpocket at gospel concert

A 26-year-old man, Lateef Nurudeen, purportedly a congregant at a christian gospel concert held at the Tafawa Balewa Square, Lagos, was actually a pickpocket, the police in Lagos has said. Nurudeen, of 10, Obadina Street, Lagos Island, was allegedly caught in the act by men of the Rapid Response Squad (RRS) in early December, 2017 […]

A 26-year-old man, Lateef Nurudeen, purportedly a congregant at a christian gospel concert held at the Tafawa Balewa Square, Lagos, was actually a pickpocket, the police in Lagos has said.

Nurudeen, of 10, Obadina Street, Lagos Island, was allegedly caught in the act by men of the Rapid Response Squad (RRS) in early December, 2017 at about 12.45 a.m. at the programme venue.

The suspect was allegedly caught with a bag containing seven stolen mobile phones belonging to gospel faithful that attended the annual musical concert tagged ‘The Experience’.

Also said to have been found inside the bag were charms and a purse containing an identity card and an ATM debit card belonging to one Chris Nkum Chinedu.

The suspect, during interrogation, was said to have told the police that he was a barber and only saw the bag underneath a flower bed. He was also said to have, however, admitted ownership of the charms found inside the bag. The police believed he was using the charms for protection against arrest in his criminal activities.

Already, investigators had identified four owners of the seven phones. The owners, who showed up at the RRS headquarters in Alausa, Ikeja, were Felix Ukwajiba, Ruth Ekhorelen, Kpanou Estelle and Kemi Ahmed.

The owners reported at the RRS headquarters when police officers called their relatives whose numbers were found on the stolen phones.

The owners told the police they didn’t know when their phones were removed from their bags and pockets and were surprised when they discovered their sets were gone after the programme.

One of them, Ukwajiuba, stated that immediately he discovered that his phone was missing, he reported the theft at Zone 2, Onikan, Lagos, where his details were taken.

Though Nurudeen, identified as an ex-convict, was said to have confessed that the two charms found in the bags were for his protection, he maintained he came to the church programme to pray and not to steal.

Defending his being in possession of charms at the church crusade, he was quoted to have said, “I pray a lot. The charms are for my personal protection. They have been with me for ages. They were specially prepared for my protection against evil. I came to the crusade to pray.

“My friends that took to their heels when police started questioning me are confirmed trouble makers. They were at the programme only to cause commotion. That is what they do and how they make a living.

“I am a trouble maker too but I came to that church programme to pray and not to steal. My friends ran because they knew I would be arrested.”

Efforts by the RRS to track down the suspect’s friends who were with him at the convention have been fruitless so far as they had abandoned their hideouts.

The Commissioner of Police, Imohimi Edgal, has directed that the case be transferred immediately to the Lagos State Criminal Investigation Department.