The rate of daytime robbery occurring from Mararaba to the Masaka axis is quite alarming. Normally a robbery is meant to occur at night time but times have changed and so some unscrupulous characters have decided to now rob in the day instead of at night. Most persons resident in Karu local government of Nasarawa State are largely civil servants and workers whose offices are in the neighbouring FCT, hence the severe traffic jam that occurs each day along the Nyanya/Mararaba route. Having left to their various work places as from about 6am till about 6pm each day, their houses are left empty and unguarded during the day.
As a result of this, thieves have decided to use the time between 11am and 2pm to rob houses. There has been a recent increase in reports that hoodlums break into houses after their occupants who are largely workers have gone to work and cart away whatever property they desire. One of such victims Mr. Samson Koledoye, who resides in Masaka told LEADERSHIP Sunday that he lived in a fortified compound and he presumed that leaving his generator outside the door in a fenced compound would be safe; “For months I have been living in this compound and I always leave my generator outside the door. So on this particular day my wife and I left for work but by the time we returned we discovered that the generator was missing. Thank God they did not break into the house. I believe that it is those who are familiar with my movement that came in to remove my generator. It is not total strangers that did it”. He alleged.
One area that has experienced recent daytime robberies is the popular OneMan Village located just after Mararaba. It is reported that most of the idle young men in the area are artisans who either sell water (mairuwa) or electricians, thus they are familiar with the movement of certain families and can tell when they may not be at home. It was also reported that these artisans are in league with some cultists in higher institutions in Nasarawa State.
Another victim Mr Henry Dennis, living in OneMan Village, just after Mararaba told LEADERSHIP Sunday how he was robbed, “just about two weeks ago. I and my wife and daughter left home at about 11am. I don’t know how they entered the house but it seems that someone climbed my fence then opened the gate from within. They drove in a car, broke my burglary proof, unlocked my main door and took all they wanted from the house, and then drove out. My wife came home three hours later and found the house empty. She shouted for neighbours to come around and they told her that they had seen two people going into the compound so confidently they believed that they were family relations. She later went to report the case to the police,” he said.
A young man Wasiu Dada, who works in the FCT was also a victim. He said that he was preparing for his wedding when the incident happened to him, “On that fateful day, I was to go with my brother to get some other necessary things for the wedding. We had already bought the clothes, aso ebi for the traditional wedding. So we went off, oblivious of them lurking around. I am a civil servant, we returned only to find most of our property missing. The neighbours told me that the thieves came in a car and even greeted them. The neighbours were deceived by the confidence with which the thieves entered the house. The drove away with all the electronics in the house and even the clothes and other things we bought for our wedding. It was terrible, we had to start buying everything all over again”, he said.
In a related incident, a young man, Bolu (not real name) was caught in a street adjacent to the ECWA Fellowship Church in New Karu. The area was a very quiet one but some residents noticed him just idling around. When he was approached and asked what he was doing just standing there, he told them he was waiting for a man who took his bike. He claimed that he was an Okada rider and after dropping a passenger on that street, a man he did not know had approached him and gave him N500 to hold. The man told him he wanted to hire the bike to carry some items and would return the bike after some time. The residents were skeptical of his story so they detained him.
One hour later, another man came to look for Bolu claiming to be his brother but when he was told that Bolu had given the bike to a stranger and would be handed over to the police on suspicion of being a thief, he ran off. Another two hours passed and the said person who Bolu had been waiting for refused to turn up so the residents called in the vigilante who thereafter handed him over to the police, suspecting he was checking to sneak into a compound and steal. Mrs Amara, one of the residents believed that Bolu was a thief, “The people living in this house have gone out. Am sure that he was waiting for a clear way to climb the fence and steal something”. She stated.
Some residents within the OneMan Village have said that the drinking joint close to the expressway is more like a gathering of criminals. Each night the area is flooded with all types of fun seekers as from 7.30pm.Many of them confirmed that the road close to Bahagu guest house along Philip Dada street is a notorious spot where motorists and innocent passersby are stopped and molested or robbed of their valuable items. The residents complain that the road is unsafe to pass once darkness comes and that the police should do something about it. One Hamza, who is an Okada rider in OneMan Village said that he was robbed of his bike along that road on a particular night just after he dropped off a passenger. “Some boys just stopped me, one of them climbed onto the bike and told me to drop him somewhere. When we got there another guy was waiting for him, the place was very dark and lonely. So the one I carried said I should give him my bike keys, when I refused he showed me a knife while the other man rushed towards us brandishing another knife. I had to give them the keys”. He said
Most of the residents in Karu local government have organised vigilante groups to guard them during the night. The vigilantes resume as from 7pm to 6am the following day. Due to the prevalence of the vigilante groups, incidences of night time robbery have greatly reduced. However, robbery is not expected to occur at daytime so the houses are left unguarded and eventually vulnerable to being burgled. Police vans are seen most times patrolling the highways and sources revealed that the police do go on raids from time to time.
LEADERSHIP Sunday asked some policemen in the area what was being done about the situation. Police in the New Nyanya division, who did not want to be quoted said that it was best that residents also organise vigilante group to guard their houses during the day. Some of the policemen, stated that the problem with the residents of the Karu area was that they were reluctant to collaborate with the police on security matters. They confirmed that indeed there has been an increase in daytime robbery as most communities have set up vigilante groups to watch their houses at night. “We advocate that people should also institute vigilante groups that will keep watch during the day time. The police cannot be everywhere at the same time.
Even if you station a police man at a certain spot all day there may be no crime happening there whereas crime could be going on a short distance away. That is why it is important for the residents to collaborate with the police to report any such matter to the police. We do some patrols and raid suspicious hideouts but that is not enough. We always try to meet with stakeholders and the chiefs of certain areas to let them know the importance of working with the police. If a vigilante is guarding the house during the day then this new trend will be reverted,” they said. Up to the time of submitting this report, efforts to reach the Nasarawa State Comissioner of police or the State Police Public relations officer proved abortive.
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