Gang leader explains connections to Saraki, Governor Ahmed

One of the gang leaders involved in the robbery attack

Nine police officers and 24 others lost their lives when a group of at least 30 armed robbers attacked Union Bank, Eco Bank, Guaranty Trust Bank, First Bank, Zenith Bank and Ibolo Micro Finance Bank,as well as the Owode Police Station in Offa on April 5, 2018.

In a statement issued by Force Public Relations Officer, ACPJimoh Moshood, on Sunday, June 3, 2018, he said the senate president and governor were named by five gang leaders as their political sponsors.

ACP Moshood alleged that a Lexus jeep GX-300 used in the robbery had a sticker plate of the senate president on it and was retrieved from the Ministry of Environmental and Forestry in Ilorin, Kwara capital during investigations.

While answering questions from the press, one of the gang leaders, Ayodele Akinnibosun, said that he is the chairman of Liberation Youths Movement, Kwara South that makes 'political arrangements' for the senate president in the constituency.

He confirmed the information supplied by the police about the Lexus jeep and noted that it was given to him by Governor Ahmed's Chief of Staff, Yusuf Abdulwahab, who is one of the 22 suspects who have been arrested in connection to the robbery.

He said, "My name is Ayodele Akinnibosun, aka AY. I am the chairman of Liberation Youths Movement, Kwara South. My involvement with the senate president is we're his boys; we work for him at Kwara South. We're the ones that hold Kwara South for him. We've been working for him since he was Governor of Kwara.

"We mobilise and do political arrangement there (Kwara South). For example, where we can't win, we make dabaru (disruptive) arrangement there; we scatter elections if we don't win.

"The connections between me and the senate president is that he's the one that is arranging everything for us. For example, this car was given to me by His Excellency (Governor Ahmed) through the Chief of Staff of Kwara state as a gift from leader, Bukola Saraki. I participated in the Offa robbery. I took this Lexus car along to Offa."

Akinnibosun further revealed that two of the guns used in the robbery were supplied to him by Abdulwahab, although he allegedly supplied it for political thuggery and not the Offa robbery. He also noted that their alleged sponsors, Saraki and Ahmed, didn't know about their robbery plans.

He said, "The senate president and governor of Kwara state (Ahmed), we have been their political thugs, and that's what encouraged us to do what we're doing.

"They did not send us for the robbery but because we are their political thugs, that's what led us to the robbery. It is the work of the devil."

Even though ACP Moshood had invited the senate president to show up at the Force Intelligence Response Team office at Guzape, Abuja for questioning, Saraki revealed on Monday, June 4, that he's been asked to instead respond to the allegations in writing within 48 hours.

The senate president and Governor Ahmed have both issued statements strongly denying the allegations of having any links to the Offa robbery.