A 31-year-old man identified as Robinson Godday posing as a soldier was rescued from a lynch mob by the police in Ogun State after he allegedly stole two phones in the Olomore area of Abeokuta, the state capital.
According to Ogun State Police Command spokesperson Omolola Odutola, the Special Weapons and Tactics Unit rescued the man who wore military uniform he stole from Ojo barracks in Lagos.
She said, “The incident followed a distress call intercepted by the command’s Cyber Centre, alerting operatives that a man dressed in full military green camouflage uniform was surrounded by a crowd and on the verge of being lynched.
“SWAT operatives raced to the scene, and upon sighting the officers, the mob immediately dispersed, allowing safe rescue of the suspect.”
Odutola explained that intelligence gathered pointed to allegations that the suspect had stolen two mobile phones from a resident before being chased and caught by youths in the area.
She stated, “Open-source intelligence further revealed that the suspect, Robinson Godday ‘m’, 31 years old, had allegedly snatched two mobile phones from a young man in the area.
“His attempt to escape proved futile as he was overtaken by a large crowd intent on mob justice.
“He was subsequently assaulted by the irate youths and sustained an injury on his right leg.”
The command added that the recovered mobile phones were returned to their owner by the crowd before police intervention.
“The suspect confessed that he was not a military officer, admitting that he had stolen the military uniform from a soldier serving at the Ojo Military Barracks, Lagos, who is currently deployed on operations in the North-East.”
A fake soldier arrest for stealing phones.