"They Stripped My House Bare": Former President Goodluck Jonathan Confirms Burglary At His Abuja Home

Former President Jonathan has confirmed that his Abuja home in Gwarimpa was broken into by thieves who then made away with every movable item in the house.

This was disclosed through a statement issued by his spokesman, Ikechukwu Eze, last night. He said the theft was discovered last month and has been reported to relevant police authorities. It was revealed that six of the suspects arrested by the police were policemen guarding the house, as opposed to the statement by the FCT Police Command that only four policemen were arrested.

The statement read:  "Following series of enquiries from journalists and other concerned Nigerians on the extent of the reported vandalisation and theft in the house of former President Dr. Goodluck Jonathan located in Gwarimpa, Abuja, we, therefore, would like to make the following clarifications: The theft was discovered last month upon which a report was duly lodged with the relevant police authorities. The police immediately commenced investigations which led to the arrest and detention of some suspects, six of whom were policemen, even as investigations continue.

"The house, which the former President bought from CITEC estate developers in 2004, was totally stripped bare by the thieves who stole every movable item in the house, including furniture sets, beds, electronics, toilet and electrical fittings, as well as all internal doors and frames.

"However, contrary to exaggerated reports in some media, only six television sets, three refrigerators and one gas cooker were stolen. Being that the house is a modest,  4-bedroom duplex, it couldn’t have been fitted with '36 Plasma television sets and about 25 refrigerators' as falsely reported by some media outfits.

"We thank all Nigerians for their show of concern and wish to convey the former President’s goodwill to all Nigerians."

A security source said two dealers who had been main recipients of the stolen items were said to have closed down their shops at Panteka market and have since remained at large, Vanguard reports. The source also revealed that the looting was discovered when a neighbor noticed "severe damage in the house" and called a member of President Jonathan’s family to ask whether the house was undergoing renovation. The former President was said to have personally gone to inspect the property after which he reported the vandalism to the Inspector-General of Police, Ibrahim Idris.

A trader at Panteka market, who confessed to being close to one of the fleeing buyers of the stolen items, according to Vanguard sources, said the police officers first brought some items to the market for sale in early 2016.

"It all started sometime around March 2016 when a mobile police sergeant came to Tipper Garage market and brought some items for sale. He approached one of the wholesalers to buy them, but the trader said he does not buy items from an unconfirmed owner. The officer who identified himself as Sergeant Musa told the trader that he was one of the security men guarding Mr. Jonathan’s private residence at Gwarimpa. He took the trader to follow him to confirm that he was not a thief who had come to sell off stolen properties in the market. The trader followed him to the residence where he met two other policemen, an Inspector, and a Sergeant. They convinced him that the items were part of gifts to them," the source said.

Afterwards, Sergeant Musa continued to invite the trader to the former president's residence to pick up fresh items.

The source said: "At a point, the trader became scared when he suspected foul play and told Sergeant Musa that he was no longer interested in the transaction.  However, the officer later got another customer, a wholesaler in the market, who would eventually buy almost 80 per cent of all the properties removed from  President Jonathan’s residence."

The spokesman of FCT Police Command, DSP Anjuguri Manzah, also confirmed the incident on Monday.

He said in a statement:  "The FCT Police Command wishes to inform the general public that it has commenced a full-fledged investigation into the case of theft in the Gwarimpa residence of former President, Dr. Goodluck Ebele Jonathan. Preliminary police investigation on the matter has revealed that some items were found to be missing in the house. Meanwhile, the Policemen who are supposed to be on guard duty at the house have been detained for questioning.

"Investigation to find out what actually happened is currently in progress.  The command wants to assure all that the result of findings on the ongoing investigation will be made public." With Lib