The Offa Descendants’ Union (ODU) on Thursday asked the Kwara State government to fasten the implementation of the recent verdict of the State High Court over the Offa robbery that claimed 33 lives.
ODU also called on the state police command to thoroughly investigate and prosecute the former Senate President, Bukola Saraki, former Governor AbdulFatah Ahmed and others mentioned by the convicted robbers during their trial.
At a press conference held in Offa last week, in the wake of the death sentence the court passed on the five culprits of the robbery, the union’s chairman, Chief Tajudeen Shittu, said while the people of Offa welcomed the court’s judgement, a lot of questions regarding the prosecution of the convicted robbers are still hanging in the air.
Recall that Justice Haleema Salman of Kwara State High Court on Thursday, sentenced the five gang leaders of the Offa robbery to death by hanging after they were found guilty of the numerous offences.The convicted five included Ayoade Akinnibosun, Azeez Salahudeen, Niyi Ogundiran, Ibikunle Ogunleye, and Adeola Abraham.
The statement reads in part: “This is a major concern for our community and a very important cause we have resolved to pursue to its logical conclusion.
“Furthermore, the Offa community requests that the investigation be extended to identify and unravel the following:
1. The individuals who supplied the vehicle used in the robbery.
2. The persons mentioned during the investigation.
“From these two pertinent points, we categorically state that the Offa community remains not only grateful but also unassuaged and unsatisfied with the conclusion of the police investigation. We consider the inquiry that led to the judgment as inconclusive and an attempt to cover and protect the names of those identified by the robbers during the investigation.
“We therefore demand a further and thorough investigation and the arrest of those who provided logistical support to the robbers. All names mentioned by the convicted individuals should be thoroughly investigated to ensure proper justice is served.
“We thus call upon the Kwara State Government to revisit the incident through a comprehensive probing of all factors, notions, and individuals involved, in order to eliminate the public perception that the Nigeria Police investigation into the April 2018 Offa Bank robbery is incomplete. This is the unnegotiable demand and prayer of the Offa community.”
