Four individuals have been arrested and remanded in the Yola correctional centre for allegedly stealing a Toyota RAV 4 valued at N5 million and selling it for N800,000. The Chief Magistrate Court 2 sitting in Yola, Adamawa state, charged Yusuf Mohammed Isah, 25, Mohammed Gidado, 33, Babangida Jalo, 43, and Adamu Yahaya, 31, with four counts of criminal conspiracy and theft.
According to ASP Iliya Akawu, the defendants conspired to steal the vehicle, which belongs to Aliyu Umar of Wuro Hausa ward in Yola South LGA. Yusuf allegedly sneaked into the owner’s house, stole a broken key, manufactured it, and used one of his accomplices, Abubakar Manu (now at large), to drive the car to Babangida Jalo.
Babangida, who had prior knowledge of the crime, arranged for Faisal Mahmud to buy the stolen vehicle. Faisal purchased the car for N800,000 and paid N400,000 into Abubakar Manu’s account as part payment. He also gave Mohammed Gidado and Nabangida Jalo N100,000 each for their roles in the crime.
The defendants were arraigned before the court for offences including “criminal conspiracy, theft, abetment and dishonesty, receiving of stolen property” contrary to sections 60, 276, 47 and 308 of the penal code law of Adamawa state, 2018. Faisal Mahmud, 30, could not be arraigned due to ill health, while Abubakar Manu remains at large.
