I should be killed if caught in crime again, suspected bike snatcher says

A 25-year-old suspect, Adetunji Adeolu, who was arrested by Osun State Police Command after a foiled attempt to snatch a bike from the rider, has vowed to stop committing crime, saying that he should be killed by law enforcers if he reneges on his promise.

The suspect was arrested by operatives of the Anti-Cultism Unit in the state command for an alleged attempt to dispossess a motorcyclist while armed with an iron rod.

The Command’s spokesman, DSP Abiodun Ojelabi, who confirmed the story when contacted by Saturday Tribune, said that on December 28, Adeolu stopped a commercial motorcyclist and asked to be taken to Adeleke Estate.

“On the way, he told the rider to stop, only to use a very thick iron rod to hit the victim’s head, resulting in a deep gash on the victim’s head.

“The commercial motorcyclist, who was bleeding heavily, immediately raised an alarm. The suspect immediately fled to hide within the estate, but the residents started searching for him until he was found where he was hiding. They made a distress call to the police, and a team from the Anti-Cultism Unit went to the scene to arrest him.”

The victim was said to have been rushed to the hospital where the deep gash was stitched.

Saturday Tribune learnt that he had once been arrested for stealing a motorcycle in 2022, and was in prison, awaiting trial, until his release in 2025. He was said to have had a regular buyer of stolen motorcycles.

He was also reported to have been a phone thief who used to steal from motorcyclists’ pockets until he was caught one day and almost lynched.

Adeolu, who hailed from Iwo Town and aged 25, in an interview with Saturday Tribune, confirmed the allegation against him.

The suspect, who said he had secondary school education and learnt tailoring, admitted: “Yes, it is true that I attempted to snatch a motorcycle from its rider when I was apprehended.

READ ALSO: I joined car snatching gang after my bike was seized by Task force —Suspect

Explaining how the incident went, Adeolu said: “On Sunday, December 28, 2025, I waved down a commercial motorcyclist from where I stood at Adeleke Estate junction. I was not a resident of the area, but just went there to carry out my plan to snatch a motorcycle from its rider. I was living in Igbokiti Community, after Okinni, in Egbedore Local Government Area.

“I was also a commercial motorcyclist, but couldn’t continue when the bike was seized by the Vehicle Inspection Officers (VIOs) because of expired documents, and the owner didn’t have another one to give me to work with.

“When we got to the gate of Adeleke Estate, I told the rider to stop for me to get down. As I did, I drew out an iron rod and smashed the motorcyclist’s head with it in order to snatch the motorcycle from him. I stole the iron rod, the type used by vulcanisers to fix tyre into a rim, from the shop of a welder.

“Unfortunately for me, the iron rod did not have the impact I intended, so the rider raised an alarm. I quickly ran away, but was apprehended by the residents where I went to hide.”

The suspect, who also confirmed his being an ex-inmate in Ilesa Correctional Centre disclosed: “I was arrested in Iwo and remanded in prison in 2022. What I did was that I went to a house in my neighbourhood at midnight after waiting for all tenants to sleep. I used some means to open the entrance door and stole the motorcycle of an elderly man living within the house. I had noticed where he usually parked it.

“I had overheard a man at Sabo area in Iwo who expressed his readiness to buy any available motorcycle. I took the one I stole to him at about 5 a.m. and sold it for N120,000. I was shocked when I saw police from Iwo Division who came to arrest me. I initially denied but later confessed to the stealing. Till today, I didn’t how they knew that I did it.

“I was arraigned and remanded in prison while on trial. While the buyer ran away with the bike.

“After three years in prison, my family got tired and went to the complainant. They appealed to him to drop the case and bought him another motorcycle. The man listened to their plea and wrote a withdrawal letter.

“I regained freedom mid 2025. My parents are dead, and the extended family held a meeting with me, urging me not to venture into crime again or they would leave me to my problem.

“I couldn’t go home in our town because of the shame I felt, so I left for Mowe in Ogun State. While there, I was working as a commercial motorcyclist but the bike was seized by the VIO and I left there for Igbokiti Community in Osun.

“On my return from prison, I was not initially in contact with the buyer of stolen motorcycles known as Ajagbe, whom I knew back then. I called him when I got his phone number. I told him that I lacked money for survival, asking him for financial support. He sent N5,000 to me and told me he was still interested in buying motorcycles from me. I had intended to snatch the bike in my latest attempt, so that I would take it to him. I planned to commit the crime because I had no other option to survive.

“Now, I regret my action so much. If I survive this trouble I have put myself into, I’m ready to be a farm labourer if that is what I’m able to get. The government should have mercy on me and make me sign an undertaking. If security men arrest me after this, they should kill me.