The Lagos state police command yesterday, Thursday, September 14, paraded five suspected killers of the former winner of the Gulder Ultimate Search, Hector Joberteh. The suspects – William Igana, Valentine Igana, Abdul-Rasheed Jimoh, Francis Madu, Usman Adeyemi – were alleged to have been involved in the death of the 38-year-old at his house on Olufowora Close, New Oko-Oba, Agege.
Recall, Joberteh, who was laid to rest yesterday, was shot dead on September 3, 2017, after he was trailed to his home from the airport where he had gone to pick up his younger brother.
The Lagos state CP, Imohimi, said the suspects were arrested following painstaking efforts by policemen.
However, one of the suspects, William, a Uber driver that drove the suspects to Joberteh’s house, said he didn’t know their mission when he was hired. He noted that he had just started with the online transport company when he was hired by the men who later turned out to be killers.
He said;
“I had just been registered under the Uber platform and I needed an android phone to facilitate the business.
I called my brother, Valentine, to help me with a phone. He introduced me to his friend, JK. JK said he had a phone I could use, which he offered for sale at N10,000.
“The next day, JK called me to take him to Yaba. On our way there, we stopped and picked two other guys. I charged them N10,000 for the service, but they gave me N8,000 and promised to pay the balance later.”
He said after the trip to Yaba, JK called him the following day and asked him to take him and his friends to Abeokuta, Ogun State.
He said he charged N20,000 for the service, which they promised to pay.
“On our way to Sango, they asked me to stop at a bushy path. They brought out a gun, which they pointed at my head. They threatened to kill me if I shouted. Two of them came down and walked to a house where they shot two persons.
“They jumped back into the vehicle and asked me to drive off, which I did. But at a point, I stopped the car and told them I wasn’t going again; they insisted that I continue driving. JK said the only reason he wouldn’t kill me was because my brother, Valentine, was his good friend.
“I never knew they were into any criminal activity. I was only doing my business. I was arrested by the police through my brother, Valentine.”
Joberteh’s phone was said to have been stolen by the assailants.
According to PUNCH Metro, the phone was tracked to Jimoh, who bought it at Computer Village, Ikeja.
In his statement, Jimoh said he never knew the phone was stolen. He said he had innocently gone to Computer Village to buy a phone, adding that he bought the phone for N15,000 from Madu.
On his part, Madu claimed an engineer friend who came with Adeyemi, sold the phone to him.
He said he bought the phone for N7,500 and sold it for N15,000. Eighteen-year-old Adeyemi said his uncle, one Ismaila, owned the phone.
Imohimi said the command was making efforts to arrest other suspects, adding that the men would be charged to court at the end of investigations.
PUNCH
