An unidentified middle-aged man abducted a 10-year-old boy, who was on an errand for his mother, and exchanged him for three bags of r...
An unidentified middle-aged man abducted a 10-year-old boy, who was
on an errand for his mother, and exchanged him for three bags of rice
in Ijegun area of Lagos.
The suspect, now on the run, reportedly accosted the victim (names
withheld), weekend, at Prince Bus Stop, Isheri Oshun, while on the
errand for his mother.
He was said to have introduced himself to the unsuspecting boy as a
relative. In an apparent move to convince the boy, the stranger,
followed him to the shop where he was sent to buy a bottle of groundnut
oil and thereafter, took him to a shop where he collected three bags of
rice.
He convinced the salesgirl, identified simply as Deborah, that he
was going to get the money, while his brother remained with her.
However, that was not to be as the salesgirl waited endlessly without
seeing the stranger or the money for the bags of rice, which totalled
N48,000.
The transaction
Speaking with Vanguard, the salesgirl said: “When the man came
to the shop with the boy, he asked how much was a bag of rice. I told
him it was N16,000 and he left with the boy, saying he was going to tell
the woman that sent them.
“Moments later, he came back and said that he needed two bags.
Again, he called the purported person that sent them on phone and
suggested that they should add one more bag.
“After the call, he told me to help him get a tricycle that
would convey the three bags of rice to Fire Junction, where he claimed
the owner was. He said the boy will remain with me while he went to get
the money.
“After waiting for close to one hour without seeing him, I told
the boy to take me to his mum’s shop at the said Fire Junction. “But he
said that his mother did not own a shop there and that the stranger
only met him on the road and brought him to the shop.
“It was at that point that I knew I had been robbed. I alerted
my neighbour, who said that the stranger must have used the boy as
exchange for the bags of rice.”
Meanwhile, apprehension had set in at the boy’s house after his
disturbed mother visited the shop, only to be informed that his son had
left with a stranger. While a search party was combing the vicinity for
the boy, the owner of the shop and the salesgirl, were sighted taking
him to the Isheri-Oshun Police Division.
During interrogation, the boy told his parents: “After
returning from the shop, the stranger asked if I knew where they sell
bags of rice. I told him they were selling close to our house.
“But he said he did not want to buy there that I should follow him to buy elsewhere.
“I followed him because he introduced himself as my cousin. He
collected the money I had with me to pay for the fare and told me to
wait at the shop, that he would come and take me back home after
dropping the bags of rice.”
The Police, however, released him to his parents same day with a
directive to report back to the station yesterday, where a meeting
between the boy’s parents and owner of the shop who insisted on getting
the money for the bags of rice.
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