A 48-year-old man arrested on a charge of pickpocketing in Adamawa State has confessed to the act.
The man, Abubakar Suleiman of Mararraban-Mubi in Hong Local Government Area, said he operated mostly in Uba, Mararraban-Mubi and Michika in the northern part of the state, as well as in Jimeta, in the metropolitan Yola North LGA.
Arrested by the police while he was allegedly in the process of stealing money from a co-passenger in Keke NAPEP along the Bank Road axis of Jimeta, the suspect said he usually made false calls while on board Keke NAPEP to distract the attention of fellow passengers, thereby gaining the opportunity to execute his plan.
Suleiman, who said he is better known as a provision seller, added that he has been in the act of pickpocketing for over two years.
He is currently being held by the police, to whom he made his confessions.
The Adamawa State Police Public Relations Officer, SP Suleiman Nguroje, who confirmed the development, urged people boarding Keke NAPEP anywhere in the state to be wary of fellow passengers.
DAILY POST reports that in Adamawa State, where Keke NAPEP is the main mode of intracity commercial transport, the vehicle is used by many criminal elements to perpetrate crime.
It is the common modus operandi of young criminal elements called Shila Boys, who operate as riders and steal handsets and cash from passengers either by trick or intimidation using light weapons.
How I dispossessed people of their money — Suspected pickpocket Suleiman
