By Suleiman Auwal, a 25-year-old man, was apprehended in Yola, Adamawa state, after it was discovered that he had been operating a transport business using a stolen tricycle, commonly known as a keke napep.
Last Friday, Auwal allegedly took the tricycle from the main shopping complex in Jimeta, where it had been put up for sale. At the time, he was without employment and decided to ride it to the nearby Jambutua community, approximately four or five kilometers away, and use it to transport passengers.
The seller of the tricycle promptly reported the theft to the Adamawa state police. Upon spotting the suspected thief riding the stolen vehicle, law enforcement authorities took immediate action and apprehended him.
According to SP Suleiman Nguroje, the State Police Public Relations Officer, Auwal, who resides in the Aso Rock area of Jambutu, confessed to stealing the tricycle from Abubakar Usman at the Juma’at Mosque in the Jimeta Ultra Modern Market. Auwal had joined others for Friday prayers at the mosque, and after completing his prayers, he quickly made his way to where the tricycles were parked and took one.
During the brief period that he possessed the tricycle, Auwal paid a local security guard N100 per day to prevent it from being stolen.
Nguroje assured the public that Auwal is currently in police custody and that the state Commissioner of Police, Afolabi Babatola, has ordered a thorough investigation and prosecution of the suspect.
