Armed robbery suspect, Chigozie Anene has confessed that he went into snatching of tricycles to give his late father a befitting burial and boost his second-hand clothes business.

A 29-year-old suspect, who also revealed that he and his gang members were buying stolen goods from burglars and armed robbers said he used to steal expensive cars and tricycles and sell them at give away price.

According to The Nation, police sources said he had a tricycle mechanic who was helping him to change some parts of a tricycle he had stolen so that whoever would buy it would not suspect that it was stolen. Anene was said to have gone into hiding after his gang was bursted by the Inspector General of Police’s Intelligence Response Team (IRT).

The source said the IRT operatives tactically asked Anene whether he had a tricycle he wanted to sell, with one of the IRT operatives posing as a buyer. But he was arrested as soon as he surfaced in a meeting with the ‘buyer’.

Narrating how he began the venture into armed robbery, Anene, a father of two, said: “I live in a one-room apartment at No. 4 Mosalasi Street, Igando, Lagos.

“I used to operate as one-man gang, singlehandedly stealing tricycles in my neighbourhood.

“My problem started when one Tunbu and one Prince became my friends and lured me into forming a three-man robbery gang to make bigger money.

Anene said he preferred to operate as a one-man gang, because he doesn’t need a gun or the risk of being exposed by any arrested gang member.“They convinced me that there is less risk in snatching cars than tricycles and that stolen cars have more standby buyers.”

He added: “The urge to give my father a befitting burial contributed most to my forming a robbery gang as well as getting enough money to boost my second-hand clothes business and live big like some of my mates.

“When I decided to stop armed robbery, my members nearly assassinated me because they felt that they were no longer safe and they would not be able to rest after any robbery operation, because I could become a police informant.”