Juliana Francis
A good number of security experts will tell you for free that there’s always a connection between cultism and armed robbery.
Many suspects, when arrested, claimed they were just cultist, not armed robbers. But cultism, drug abuse, robbery, kidnapping and murder are all connected.
Cultism has left campus premises and now dances before our very eyes in our streets. Every child growing up in different communities in Nigeria has become an endangered species.
Before operation, they take illicit drugs to make them feel unusually high, bold and fearless. They kidnap victims and rival group members. To run the gang or group, they’ll money, and because they’re already armed with weapons, why the heck not use the weapons to rob?…Yeah, they rob!
To display power and supremacy, they kill victims who had become irritants in their communities and kill rival gang members. Many of them are also into cybercrimes.
Listen to the story of these two young Nigerians below…
These two were part of a seven-man gang arrested by police operatives for armed robbery, murder and kidnapping.
Godwin Rafael’s story
“My journey into crime began when one of my friends, CJ, got me initiated into the Vikings confraternity. I then became friends with one Henderson, Uloma and Handsome. They were all members of the Vikings, but were into armed robbery and kidnapping. Henderson was always having money on him and whenever I was broke, I usually go to him for support. It was on one of the occasions I went to him, that he asked me to join the gang. I accepted and one of the first operations I went with him, was in August 2020. Henderson was arrested and I escaped to Imo State.
Henderson was charged to court and is still in prison. We robbed a POS operator at Umugasi, in Union Back area and collected N52, 000 from the operator. We also collected the POS machine. We were three persons that went for that operation, and we used a tricycle and locally made guns. I got N20, 000 as my share.
The second operation was at Market Road by Kents in Aba. We robbed a POS operator, but this time it was a man. I shot him on the cheek because he pushed my gang member, Chibuike Sunday. We were five that went on that operation and I got N7000 as m share of the loot. He died. I didn’t know the operation would take his life.
The story of Uzoma Samuel
I joined armed robbery gang because I needed money for my clearance in school. I was schooling at Abia State Polytechnic. I joined Vikings confraternity in 2016. It was my friend, Henderson that initiated me.
I joined his robbery gang because I was looking for money to do my clearance in school. I can’t explain why Rafael killed the man because we met him outside and he didn’t put up any resistance. He cooperated with us. It was when we were about leaving that I heard a gunshot. I turned and saw the man lying in a pool of blood.
We all decided not to rob again, but when we became financially down, another of our gang member, Santiago, suggested we should rob a woman at Ogbor Hill. When we went there, he shot and killed the woman. I knew we were in big trouble and I also knew the police would hunt for us. But before then, I was part of the group that robbed a POS operator at School Road, at Uke Hill Junction. We got N50, 000, but nobody was killed.
First Published 2021
