Guards Help Robbers To Steal From Pharmaceutical Firm

The Lagos State Police Command has arrested two
security guards, Ali Salifu and Eno Kela, with seven
others for allegedly robbing pharmaceutical
company, May and Baker, in Ikeja Indusrial Estate. Police Public Relations Officer, Ngozi Braide, told
PUNCH Metro that the arrested guards gave other
security men in the company some packs of juice
laced with a banned drug, Rohypnol, to make
them sleep when the robbery was taking place. She added that policemen attached to the Special
Anti-Robbery Squad were, however, able to foil
the operation after some hours of surveillance. She said, “On August 24, 2013, SARS operatives
received information that some robbers were
planning to rob May and Baker at Ikeja. Around
9pm, the robbers had duplicated a key to the
warehouse where the company’s products were
kept. We learnt that some of the security guards had connived with the robbers after being
promised N200,000. “The robbers also gave the security men laced
juice and told them to give it to other security
men at the company to make them sleep. The
robbers came in two trucks and were loading
cartons of two expensive drugs, Sulphatride and
Thyzamide, into the trucks when they were apprehended. “Policemen from SARS stormed the place and
foiled the robbery. The robbers, who were in
possession of two AK-47 rifles, immediately threw
their guns into the warehouse when they saw the
policemen. “The robbers and the prospective buyer of the
stolen goods have all been arrested.” The suspects, however, said they were not armed
during the robbery. The security guards also denied complicity. They
said they did not know that a robbery was taking
place on the premises until policemen arrived at
the scene. Salifu said, “They had approached me before,
saying they wanted to rob and they would give
me N200, 000 but I refused. On the day they
came, they told me they were going to another
company. I did not know they came to rob.” The suspect accused of masterminding the
operation, Olanrewaju Simeon, said this was his
second time of robbing the company. Simeon, who claimed to have been in charge of
the company’s security before his dismissal in
2011, said he was expecting N1m from the
operation. He said, “I have been jobless since I was asked to
leave the company in 2011. But I understand how
things are done at the company. Last year, I
successfully robbed the place and made N1m.
This year, I got in touch with another security
guard at the company, Richard, who gave me the go ahead to rob. ”May and Baker shares the compound with five
other companies, so the security guards at the
main gate are different from those attached to
May and Baker. I understood this very well and
Richard told me that he would get some drinks,
inject them with Rohypnol and give them to the security guards at May and Baker, telling them that
he was celebrating his birthday.”