Police High Command on Thursday paraded 14 suspects over the invasion of the Abuja residence of a Supreme Court Justice, Mary Odili, describing them as impostors who were unknown to any of the nation’s security forces.
Parading the suspects at the Force Headquarters Annex, Abuja, the Force Spokesman, Frank Mba, a Commissioner of Police, CP, said that the 14 suspects and seven other now at large conspired to raid the residence following information provided by self acclaimed whistle blower that the Supreme Court Justice was keeping a large sum of money in foreign currencies at her residence.
This came just as the prime suspect Lawrence Ajodo the fake CSP insisted that he was working for the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice Mallam Abubakar Malami, but was not sent to forge the signatures and the documents found on him.
Mba stated that following the failed unlawful attempt to raid the residence of the Supreme Court Justice by some people who presented themselves as security agents and members of Asset Recovery Panel from the Office of the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, AGF, Abubakar Malami, the Inspector General of Police IGP, Usman Alkali Baba ordered the Federal Investigation Bureau, FIB, of the Nigeria Police Force to carry out a comprehensive investigaton into the matter.
He added that AGF, also petitioned the IGP over the unfortunate incident in which he called for a thorough investigation as to identities of those behind the illegal act and their motives.
Mba further explained that during the course of investigation, it was discovered that the act was perpetrated by a syndicate made up of characters from various field of endeavours including journalism, law profession, Clerk with the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, and the military amongst others.
According to him, “it has been discovered that the failed raid was a well conceived one with many actors and actresses drawn from various endeavors, the man who claimed to be a CSP with the Nigeria Police Force was never a police personnel, the Identity card he was parading was a forged one, the identity card he claimed to have been issued by the AGF was also forged, there is a journalist, two lawyers and those who conspired to carry out the illegal operation.
He said that the prime suspect, one Lawrence Ajodo who claimed to be a Chief Superintendent of Police, CPS, who led the illegal operation purportedly to be operating under Asset Recovery Panel from the Office of the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, was not an officer of the Nigeria Police Force, but an impostor.
According to him, the fake CSP and his syndicate succeeded in obtaining security search warrant from the court after swearing to an affidavit by one Ali Ibrahim, a member of the group who claimed that a huge sum of money in foreign currencies was being kept in the building.
He added that, after this, the syndicate contacted some operatives of the EFCC, two Soldiers from the Lungi Barracks , Asokoro, Abuja, a Journalist with a leading newspaper in the country for the illegal operation after series of meetings were perfected for the illegal act.
According to Mba, the syndicate however met the brick wall when the security operatives attached to the residence of Justice Mary Odili put up resistance and demanded for their true identities and later raised the alarm.
He commended the resistance put up by the security personnel attached to Odili’s residence for not allowing the suspects access to the building on the day of the incident, saying that it would have been a greatest embarrassment to the nation before the international community if the operation had succeeded.
Mba who further said that efforts were being stepped up to track down the fleeing members of the syndicate including two military personnel declared that the suspects would be charged to court on the completion of the ongoing investigations for criminal offences ranging from conspiracy, trespass, forgery to accessory amongst others.
However, speaking with newsmen, the prime suspect, Lawrence Ajodo the fake CSP insisted that he was working for the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakarkar Malami but not sent to forge the signatures and the documents found on him.
According to him, “I work for Malami as a consultant of recoveries, I was given 18 accounts to recover. Though, Malami did not send me to this mission, but I am a banking expert with specialty in finance and forensic.
On his own, the Journalist claimed that he was following a story lead on that day based on the clue given to him by one of the arrested lawyers that a raid was going to be carried out by an Asset Recovery Panel under the Office of the AGF and that he was not part of the syndicate as being alleged.
Also speaking, the whistle blower Ali Umar Ibrahim, said he was the whistle blower, and that he sworn to an affidavit that there was millions of money in various foreign currencies being starched in the house.
The suspect who claimed to be a prayer warrior said that he was introduced to the godson of Justice Odili and he prayed to know if the story was through and he decided to go through the EFCC as a formal channel, he said he later ended in the Ministry of Justice. He asked to show the address and that he directed them to Justice Odili’s residence after surveillance.
However, reacting to the prime suspect’s claim that he was a consultant to Abubakarkar Malami, the Minister dismissed the claim, describing it as “a case of a drowning man scavenging for a dying partner.”
In a statement made available to news men in a swift reaction to the claim by the Special Assistant on Media and Public Relations, Dr. Umar Jibrilu Gwandu, he said that “it only takes the imagination of the evil minds to assume or think that the Honourable Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice will descend so low to engaging a quack or fake police officer to serve as his consultant”.
The statement reads, “The attention of the Office of the Honourable Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice has been drawn to a confession of a suspect during interrogation in the investigation of the recent invasion of the residence of the highly respected Justice of the Supreme Court; Justice Mary Peter Odili.
“With all the competent, high level professionals and capable human resources available at the disposal of the Honourable Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, it only takes the imagination of the evil minds to assume or think that the Honourable Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice will descend so low to engaging a quack or fake police officer to serve as his consultant
“This is a case of a drowning man scavenging for a dying partner.
“We are happy to note that investigation has commenced to unravel the circumstances and personalities behind the invasion and sponsored campaign of calumny against the Honourable Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice.
“It is our desire and we hope that the investigation would also disclose those after the Honourable Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, those dragging his personality, his name and his exalted office in the dirty politics of disrepute. This is an orchestrated attempt to stir unnecessary controversies and public apprehension.
“We asked the suspect to present documents of engagements where he worked as a consultant to the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, whether in past or now.
“Consultant for what? Which activity or assignment? When was he engaged? What were the terms of references for the alleged consultancy service? When was he engaged? Where was he engaged? Which work has he executed for the Honourable Attorney General of the Federation and the Ministry of Justice? For what duration? And for how much?
“We boldly and unequivocally challenge the fake consultant/police officer to come out with answers or responses to these questions to the general public.
“The Honourable Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice superintend over and respects the rule of law who will not do anything to undermine the sanctity of his office and that that entire judiciary and Justice sectors”
