Drama As Church Robbers Beg God For Forgiveness In Enugu

It was like a drama from one of the Nollywood movies as three men, who robbed a church in Enugu burst into tears and asked God for help at the State Criminal Investigation Department, SCID, of the Enugu State Police Command.

Relating their nefarious activities in the house of the Lord, the suspects, who gave their names as Efe Best, Nester Uvieghara and Ben Kalu, said they had robbed St. Mary’s Catholic Church, Trans Ekulu, Enugu State on July 9, through the invitation of one of the parishioners who is said to be a member of Knight of Saint Lumumba.

The suspects also disclosed the name of the Knight who invited them for the operation as Sir Joseph, who is said to be an in-law to the parish priest.

The leader of the gang, Kalu, said: “Joseph used to be our gang member in Lagos where we used to steal car and vandalise all the parts and sell them at a place called Coconut in Lagos. We have been with him for the past eight years before he relocated to Enugu and we have been in touch since then.

“About three weeks ago, he came to Lagos and met us and introduced this job to us but refused to disclose to us that we were going into the house of God to rob and steal cars.”

The suspects added that on arrival in Enugu, they were checked into one hotel in Trans Ekulu by the said Joseph waiting for the zero hour. They said that about 1.30a.m. on July 9, they were taken to the premises of St Mary’s Catholic Church, Trans Ekulu for the robbery.

Kalu said they robbed the parish priest office and also attempted to move some cars out before they met resistance from the security operatives who were alerted by the public.

He added that as a result, they escaped with some injuries sustained when they encountered the security operatives.

On their way back to Lagos, they stopped over at Ore, Ondo State to eat but members of the National Union of Road Transport Workers, NURTW, who suspected them alerted the police from Ondo State command who rounded them up.

“We regret every bit of our action because we never knew that we were going into the house of God to rob and steal cars although when we got there, Joseph told us that the priest is not in town. We want God to forgive us because it was not our intention to rob in the house of the Lord. It was Joseph who led us into this mess,” the gang leader added.

Meanwhile, the Enugu State Police Command has commenced investigation into the robbery. The commands Police Public Relations Officer, PPRO, Ebere Amaraizu, said the suspects would be made to face the music in accordance with the law after the investigation.