The police in Lagos State have arrested a 27-year-old housemaid, Mariam
Acheme, and four others for allegedly robbing the housemaid’s boss. (Suspects
pictured above)
According to police authorities, the housemaid, invited her boyfriend,
Dansu Akokran, and another person at large to rob her boss and also stage her
own kidnap.
The Police Public Relations Officer of the state command, Ngozi Braide,
said, “On November 26, 2012, the housemaid invited her boyfriend to her boss’
house when the madam had gone out. On getting to the house, the boyfriend and
another person ransacked the entire house.
“They vandalised the doors and
also stole all the valuables. The housemaid then padlocked the gate from
outside and fled with them.”
PUNCH Metro learnt that
when the owner of the house arrived, she discovered that all her valuables were
gone and Acheme was nowhere to be found.
The victim was said to have immediately reported
the matter to the Bode Thomas Police Division.
Braide said a few days later, someone contacted the
housemaid’s boss and informed her that Acheme had been kidnapped. She said the
woman returned to the police and informed them of the development.
Braide said, “The madam told the police that some
men called and said they had kidnapped the housemaid. The men asked for N5m and
said if the money was not paid, they would not release her. The housemaid spoke
to her ‘madam’ on the phone, crying and telling her that she was being tortured
by the kidnappers and urged her boss to pay the ransom immediately.
“The Divisional Police Officer, Bode Ojajuni,
immediately swung into action. Detectives at the station were able to establish
contact with the kidnappers and urged them to collect N1m. The kidnappers then
sent a bank account number which the money should be paid into.”
It was learnt that the account number belonged to
one Prosper Tatou, a bricklayer.
Through the bank account number, policemen traced
the owner to Agbara area of Ogun State and accosted him.
A close police source, who craved anonymity, said
Tatou led the police to the hideout of the other suspects.
He said, “Tatou said he knew nothing about any
kidnap but told us that a few days earlier, his brother, Jean Mari, had asked
him to send his bank account number because he needed to receive some money
from someone.
“Tatou then led us to a deserted building where his
brother lives. At the house, we were able to arrest those who masterminded the
purported kidnap.”
Detectives were however shocked when they saw the
housemaid in the compound.
“That was when we discovered that she connived with
her boyfriend to commit the crime,” the police source said.
Acheme however denied conniving with the
kidnappers.
She said although she had invited her boyfriend to
come and visit her when the incident occurred, she had no clue of his
intentions.
“I invited my boyfriend (Dansu) to come and
visit me at the house when my madam had gone out. When he arrived, he came with
another guy and both of them pushed me into the toilet and locked me there.
They stole all my madam’s things and then kidnapped me,” she said.
When asked why she did not escape from the
purported kidnappers’ den when she had the chance, she said, “I could not
escape because I did not know the terrain.”
She added, “My boss was very nice to me. She paid
me N12, 000 a month and I had worked with her for seven months and she never
maltreated me.
“She has two grown-up children and they even give
me tip when I do their laundry. I could not have repaid their kindness with
wickedness.”
Dansu also claimed to be innocent, saying it was
his friend, Femi, who is now at large, that planned the whole thing.
The PPRO seized the opportunity to warn employers
of domestic servants to be wary of the people they hire, noting that cases of
crimes being committed by domestic servants seem to be on the rise.
The PPRO noted that the suspects were all nationals
of Benin Republic and said it was necessary for employers to register their
domestic servants at the nearest police stations.
Source:
Punch.
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