"I'm not a robber, I only steal parked okadas"- Motorcycle thief

Raji Saheed, 19, arraigned at Eleweran Police Station, Abeokuta Ogun State where the police detained him for allegedly stealing motorcycles, Saheed told Punch correspondent how he ended up being a criminal.

“I started stealing okadas since 2011, and it was as a result of mixing up with bad friends that I got into the business. It was not my intention to steal.

I was an apprentice vulcaniser, but when my master died, I was confused and I didn’t know what else to do.

That was when I met this friend who taught me how to steal okada. I do not know where my friend is right now, but in 2012, I heard he had been arrested and was remanded in Kirikiri prison.”

Once a thief, I am a thief forever. I used to steal from Ifo in Ogun State and sell to my customers in Mushin, Lagos State. Depending on the grade of the okada, it could be sold between N30,000 and N40,000. I cannot count the number of okadas I have stolen and sold like that.

“I am not an armed robber. I only steal parked motorcycles especially at night. I used a tool called sibi to unlock them, particularly the Bajaj motorcycle brand.”