Daniel Duru, a 31-year-old man from Imo State was born and brought in the north. Because of this, he is fluent in Hausa, Igbo and English language. However, instead of using this multi-linguistic prowess to a better use, he decided to engage in crime, flowing with different gangs of people from diverse backgrounds, though he felt more at home with the Northerners.

Duru was the leader of a gang of robbers made up of Fulani herdsmen. They used to move their weapons from Zamfara State to operate in Oyo State.

According to Duru’s confessions at a recent media briefing at the Oyo State Police Command, he had connections with different kidnap gangs that he could tell which gang struck at a particular place, even if he was not part of the operation.

That was how immediately he heard about the kidnap of Senator Iyabo Anisulowo in Ogun State in 2016, he knew the gang that carried out the job. He went ahead to call the kidnap gang’s leader and got a confirmation of his guess.

Though Duru ended up in prison awaiting trial over other kidnap cases he was part of in Oyo State, his first thought after securing a bail was how to make money from crime while the case continues in court. His excuse? He was frustrated because he was not getting money to spend like he did before going to prison.

Since crime and criminals don’t continue forever, Duru and other suspected members of his criminal gang are back in police net.

Saturday Tribune learnt that they were arrested by the Federal Special Anti-Robbery Squad in Oyo State, led by their commander, SP Sola Aremu, after they carried out a robbery operation at Idi Ayunre area of Ibadan-Ijebu-Ode road.

The Commissioner of Police in Oyo State, Abiodun Odude, during a recent press briefing, described Duru as an “unrepentant kidnap/robbery kingpin who had masterminded high profile kidnap of several victims, including Senator Iyabo Anisulowo.”

Though Duru was arrested in 2016, he was granted bail in January this year, but was quick to crime, in an attitude of ‘business as usual.’

According to Odude, “barely four months after his release from Agodi prison, the suspect formed another armed robbery gang which operated on Ibadan-Ijebu Ode road axis, terrorizing, maiming and robbing commuters of valuables.”

The police commissioner went further to disclose that in one of the robbery operations allegedly carried out by Duru and his gang members who were herdsmen, they invaded Iyana Bare farm Settlement via Idi Ayunre in April, robbed one Haruna Usman, before killing him when he resisted being kidnapped.

He gave names of other arrested suspected members as Aminu Abubakar (22) and Umaru Mohammed (23). Odude said that Abubakar was the gang’s armourer who usually got arms transported to him in Ibadan by one Asara from Zamfara State, adding that Azara and other gang members were at large.

He added that the third suspect, Mohammad was an ex-convict who once served a jail term in Lokoja prison, Kogi State.

He listed the exhibits recovered from the suspects to include three AK-49 rifles, an English-made pistol, 87 rounds of live 7.62 ammunition and 16 expended shells of 7.62 ammunition.

Saturday Tribune had an interview with two of the suspects. Though they admitted the robbery operation, they denied the killing of Usman during an attempt to kidnap him.

But Saturday Tribune’s findings revealed that the expended shells found at the scene of the killing and robbery were the same as the live ones found in the Ak-49 rifles recovered from the gang. It was also learnt that the robbery operation on Ibadan-ijebu Ode road was carried few hours after the killing of Usman.

Below are the excerpts of the suspects’ confessions:

Daniel Duru

I am 31 years old. I am from Ihete-Uboma Local Government Area of Imo State, though born and brought up in the North. I am fluent in Hausa language. I was into buying and selling of clothes in Lagos before I went into crime. I got involved in crime in 2013. I joined crime because things were not going on well. I know I didn’t need to hurt people to make a living. That was the mistake I made, hurting others to eat.

Foray into crime world

A friend of mine, Mohammed, a Hausa man, introduced me to crime. I was introduced to him by one Dele. I met Dele at Nuhu Bamali Polytechnic, Zaria, and we were in the same secret cult, Aiye Confraternity.

Mohammed usually came to wash his vehicle at a car wash in Ibadan. Because I could speak his language, I asked him what he was doing for a living. He later told me he was into kidnapping. One thing about crime is that a person involved in crime can’t just see somebody and say he should join him in crime. One has to be introduced into it.

I started working with Mohammed around 2015. We started kidnapping in early 2015. Before then, I was into hijack and diversion of fuel tankers at gunpoint.

I was not among those who kidnapped Senator Iyabo Anisulowo, but I know those who did. It was in 2016. I was watching television when it was reported that Senator Anisulowo had been kidnapped in Abeokuta on the way to her farm, and that the kidnap was carried out by some Fulani herdsmen.

Immediately, I sensed it was Mamman, a Fulani man that was into kidnapping, so I picked my phone and called him. I told him that I heard Senator Anisulowo had been kidnapped. He then started laughing, while promising to call me back. Then he dropped the line.

After about five hours, Mamman called, confirming that he had truly kidnapped the senator. He said there was controversy on the operation, as the family wanted to pay money, but the government didn’t want ransom to be paid.

Mamman said if they released the senator without collecting money, other victims’ families would want to do same thing when they kidnap others; and that it won’t make the business lucrative again. I, however, warned him against killing the senator. I told him there would be problem if the woman should be killed, since she was in government.

I continued telling Mamman the implication of killing the senator, but after 10 days, the woman was released without any ransom paid.  Before the release, Mamman said anytime they wanted to go and collect ransom, the police and DSS operatives would be there.

How I was arrested

I was arrested after two weeks, and Mamman was also arrested. I was arrested by the Intelligence Response Team (IRT) due to the communication I was having with Mamman.

After the arrest, Mamman and others were taken to Abuja. I was not taken to Abuja because before then, I had carried out two operations in Ogbomoso and Oyo towns. I was taken to court in Ibadan for conspiracy and kidnapping.

Oyo, Ogbomoso operations

The operation in Ogbomoso was when we kidnapped one Chief Adekiitan. He was with us for two days and we collected N15 million as ransom before he was released. I got N500,000 as my share. There were many people involved in the operation, and Mohammed was one of the gang leaders.

There was another Zakari. Almost all those who participated in the operation are Fulani. We were eight in the gang as leaders, but many more people were in the bush where we were keeping victims.

In Oyo town, we also kidnapped one Adesh (Adeshina), and he stayed with us for three days in the bush. I didn’t go for the operation. It was two soldiers who kidnapped him. Mohammed got the soldiers and they went to the man, putting on an allegation that someone died in his hotel. We got N10 million as ransom, and I was given N350,000.

While the case was going on in court, the complainant was not coming, so my lawyer decided to submit application for bail. That was how I was granted bail.

Fresh venture into crime after prison

I was remanded in prison custody but got a bail in January this year, although my case is still in court. However, when I came back from prison, I had nothing doing, so I was thinking of going into business, because while in prison, someone was telling me how lucrative charcoal business is.

I was thinking of going into this business, but there was no money to venture into business. However, there was another inmate in prison, serving a life sentence, and his brother usually visited him.

When I wanted to leave prison, I asked him what his brother was doing, and he said he was into cow business. So when I got out, I linked up with the brother at Ojoo area of Ibadan. I met him at the trailer park. I asked him if he could loan me money so I could join in the cow business, but he said he had no money and that business was no longer moving.

I was in Lagos then, but he said anytime I was coming to Ibadan, I should let him know. When I came to Ibadan, I called him, but he said he was not in Ibadan but would link me up with his friend, Aminu; and he would ask him to give me money.

When I came to Ibadan again, I thought Aminu wanted to give me a huge amount like N100,000, but he gave me N7,000. I was no angry with the person he sent to me, saying that if I had known that he was going to give me N7,000, I wouldn’t have come from Lagos.

Aminu later told me to calm down. As we were discussing, he told me he also just got released from the prison and that he was into kidnapping. He said if I could carry out robbery operations, then I would raise money fast. That was how I agreed.

Robbery as a cult

He told me that the person who linked us didn’t know he was into robbery, and I promised not to let him know.

One thing is that robbery is just like a secret cult, there is confidentiality in it.

After that discussion, I went back to Lagos, and after about three weeks, he called me that I should come to Ibadan.

I then came back to Ibadan, and he told me that there is a work we would do. We then went to Ibadan-Ijebu-Ode Road, around 11:00a.m. We stopped only one vehicle. I don’t know how they got the guns used in the operation.

We robbed the passengers, and I thought I would get better money from the operation. But that was not to be as I was arrested around 3:00p.m same day when coming out of the bush. We had the operation around 11:00a.m. I went back to crime because I was frustrated, but I regret my action.

Aminu Abubakar

I am from Sokoto State. I started coming to Ibadan since 2011. I was following my boss down to Ibadan for cow business then.

I started robbery in 2017. I was introduced into robbery by one man. He is also Fulani. There was a time when one man, Boyo, took me to Niger State for robbery. I have gone there about five times to rob. We would use torch lights at night to search passengers in vehicles and rob them.

Later Boyo said he was stopping robbery to take care of his cows. He gave me a man’s number but I later learnt he died after having an accident.

I returned to Ibadan, until this latest robbery. The man gave me Duru’s number, and that was how I met Duru. The name of the person who brought the guns for the operation is Asara. Asara used to get guns from one guy called Katchala in Zamfara State. Asara came with five others for the operation.

I only carried out robbery operation, not attempted kidnapping. I also did not kill anyone.

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