I Begged To Be Admitted Into Pirate Gang —Suspect

A suspected pirate has lamented how he begged a sea pirate gang before he was admitted into its fold. The suspect, who is currently detained by the Task Force, said he took the decision when he realised the huge amount of money members of the gang were making after their operation.
He said that before he became a member, he used to look for prospective buyers of their stolen products. This role, according to him, did not fetch him the amount to take care of his responsibilities.
He recalled: “Whenever they shared money they always gave me a little share. So one day, I went to them and begged that I wanted to join them. Then I was introduced to one of their leaders and the group accepted me.”


The suspect further recalled that his first operation with the gang took place on Benin Republic waters in January this year. He said they successfully hijacked another vessel known as MT ENERGY CENTURION some weeks ago and after the operation, he was given N2.7million. He said he bought a new car from the proceeds.
He also said COJA is the code name of sea piracy operation while the captain of buyer vessel is referred to as Double Juliet. He also confessed that it took his gang three days to reach the location of the vessel.
The suspect alleged that one Jonathan provides money to buy foodstuff for the gang, while one captain hires the vessel for operation. Someone he called Tari provides the weapon while Ebere and Solo allegedly buy the stolen products.
The suspect identified a vessel, MY EJENAVI, currently detained at the Jetty of the RMRCC, as one his gang had used to operate on different occasions. He further revealed that he had held several meetings with those he described as sponsors of their operations.
He said he was arrested on 2 October, 2012 in a hotel located in Festac Town while in the company of some prostitutes. He said he was called on his mobile phone and asked to return to Lagos the following day for yet another operation.
The security agents collected his three mobile phones after which a persistent call to one of the lines gave them a clue leading to the arrest of the captain who wanted to know the whereabouts of the suspect to connect him for a pre-operation meeting. The security agency used the suspect as a bait by asking him to play along with the captain until he was also arrested.