File photo.
By Rotimi Ojomoyela, Ado-Ekiti
As Ekiti State Police Command launched a manhunt for Oguntoyinbo Samuel for allegedly being the mastermind behind bank robberies and kidnappings in the state and environs, residents appear to have joined the search for the kingpin.
What seems to have triggered the interest of the residents in the manhunt was the bounty of N5 million put on the alleged notorious criminal by the police.
Oguntoyinbo, also known as ‘Badoo’ or ‘eleven’, was said to have been the mastermind of a string of robbery operations and kidnappings in Ekiti since 2019.
The operations carried out by the alleged gang leader and his men include the Oye-Ekiti bank robbery in November 2019 where which killed two policemen.
He was also fingered as the leader of the dare devil armed robbery gang that invaded a commercial bank in Ile-oluji, Ondo State on February 7, 2020 which claimed the lives of four policemen.
Whereas some of his alleged gang members, namely, Tunbosun Ojo, 42, Ismaila Ojo, 25, Victor Oyeyemi, 36, Dele Ariyo, 44, Shola Oladimeji, 50, Olubodun Folayemi, 44 and Adeniyi John, 42, have been arrested and facing prosecution, Oguntoyinbo remains at large and hence the manhunt and N5million bounty on him. Sunday Abutu, Ekiti police spokesman, said, “Effort is on to locate him. He was suspected to have attacked police stations, masterminded kidnapping and bank robbery operations in Ekiti State and neighbouring states.
“Members of his gang who are already in jail and those arrested in recent times confessed that he was their leader.
“The recent one was the Oye-Ekiti bank robbery where some policemen were killed during an attack on the police station in that community”.
Olatunbosun, according to police sources, is deadly and daring, and has the capability to discern like minds, recruit them for operations and discard them thereafter.
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“He would enter the state with his gang, rob, maim victims and move out immediately to neighbouring states”.
He was declared wanted by the Ekiti police for allegedly involved in bank robberies and kidnappings in the state and environs and a price tag of N5m was placed on him as a reward for whoever apprehends him.
This was contained in a statement by the state Commissioner of Police, Mr. Babatunde Mobayo, last weekend.
Mobayo added that the suspect is an indigene of Iyin Ekiti in Irepodun/Ifelodun local government area.
“Any person with useful information concerning his whereabouts can please contact the nearest Police Station or the Special Anti Robbery Squad Department on 07031620186 or the PPRO on 09064050086”, he said.
“Such person shall be rewarded with a huge sum of N5 million”.
