Residents seek IG’s help over rising crimes on Lagos-Ibadan Expressway

Egbetokun

Residents of at least seven communities in the Obafemi Owode Local Government Area of Ogun State have called on the Inspector General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun, to urgently intervene in what they described as a worsening wave of violent crimes along the Long Bridge section of the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway.

The communities say the area has become a hotspot for armed robbery, kidnapping, and physical attacks targeting road users and nearby residents.

Speaking with PUNCH Metro on Monday, some residents of the area alleged that the bridge and its surroundings had been taken over by criminal gangs who operate from the overgrown sidewalks and nearby bush land.

“At one time, these boys had a ladder that they placed on the bridge. They used it to commit crimes on the bridge and escape afterwards. There is hardly a day when a robbery or attack is not reported,” a resident identified only as Kola told PUNCH Metro.

Another community member, identified only as Jela, recounted a disturbing incident involving a woman caught dumping a corpse by the roadside.

“She was arrested by our local security team and the police. She had dropped the body in the middle of the night and was about to flee when she was caught,” Jela told PUNCH Metro.

Further underscoring the security challenges, the chairman of the Arepo Areas Community Development Committee, Ganiyu Kazeem, said human remains were recently discovered underneath the bridge.

He explained that the discovery was made after the community organised a weed-clearing exercise to improve visibility and reduce criminal hideouts.

In a letter obtained by PUNCH Metro, the communities, including Arepo, Warewa, Arigbede, Mokore, Banku, Mawere, Magboro, Oke-Afa and others, described the Long Bridge as “the den of kidnappers who waylay travellers to rob them of their personal effects.”