The dismissed police corporal, Micheal Adikwu, was part of the gang that carried out the deadly Offa bank robbery which resulted in many deaths. According to an exclusive interview with Daily Trust Saturday, the policeman-turned-bandit confessed his deep hatred for the Nigeria Police Force. He revealed that his hate accounts for the number of policemen he killed since he formed his gang.
Micheal Adikwu and Kunle Ogunleye aka Arrow are armed robbery suspects arrested by operatives of the IGP’s Intelligence Response Team (IRT), led by ‘supercop’ Abba Kyari.
Adikwu also confessed that of the over 20 persons he’s killed in his sprees in the past, a good number of them were policemen. He also admitted that he planned and led the now-infamous bank robbery in Offa, which caught the nation’s attention.
“I was formerly working with the Kwara State Police Command, Special Anti Robbery Squad (SARS). I was dismissed for allowing detained suspected armed robbers to walk. It was not my fault, it was a gang-up against me. Go and ask, I was one of the finest policemen at SARS, Kwara State Command. I undertake most of the difficult tasks. But for just one mistake which was not my fault, I got kicked out of the force. I was not given fair-hearing, so I now hate everything about the police,” he said.
Adikwu told Daily Trust Saturday that embittered, he vowed to deal with policemen who dared cross his path. “The killing of the policemen was not a mistake, but quite deliberate. I see them as all the same,” he said, adding that it took him about three weeks to plan the Offa heist.
Adikwu also revealed that as a resident of Offa, he knows the area “like the back of his hand”. He sought after and met with other gang leaders who also operate in Kwara. “I got to know a good number of them while I was working in SARS. Initially, they were a little afraid, but I was able to sway their minds. After the meetings, we took a tour around the bank during which were able to identify the security points, which were very loose. The next step was getting enough guns and ammunition, so we put together guns belonging to various gangs.”
During the planning, Adikwu suggested smoking bank security out of their post with tear gas. “We arrived the bank very early on the day of the operation with each person manning his own area. We agreed that only five of us drawn from the various gangs will enter the banking hall.”
Ogunleye, also called Arrow, confessed to having killed two people. Another member of the gang, Abel, also confessed to having killed five. Abel reportedly said: “I killed five people, but I sprayed bullets on many people. I don’t know if they died. I can only confirm the death of five people, which I witnessed myself.”
A police source said Adikwu, while in prison, had been threatening to the hearing of other inmates, that he would kill as many policemen as possible once he gets the opportunity. He said that since the authorities dismissed him, and threw him in jail for releasing armed robbers, he too would deal with the police.”
The source added that Adikwu was the grand organizer of the robbery, as well as a daredevil attack on a police station. “The gang went to Offa three times on surveillance mission. The police station and banks were carefully studied,” said the source, revealing that Adikwu led the first team to enter the police station, while others stayed outside. He led the three gang members into the station. The four of them walked into the station like they came to lodge a complaint. They concealed their rifles in their clothes and immediately they entered the police station premises, Adikwu opened fire and killed the station guard.
The source said: “He killed nine people in the police station and took away their rifles. They confessed to have taken the drug Tramadol before embarking on the operation. They killed over 30 people on that day. Adikwu alone killed more than 20.”
Another source said after the operation, Adikwu went to each of the banks which were being robbed to issue orders. He was captured on CCTV shouting at his members, telling them what to do. With dailytrust.com.ng
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