Unlawful voter cards printer arrested in Ikorodu

Nigeria Police Force.

Are Abideen , a 37-year-old Lagos State indigene has been arrested by the Zone 2 Police Command during a business centre raid in the Ikorodu axis of Lagos State.
Are and his co-accomplice, were suspected to be printing voter cards for fraudsters.

A detective attached to the Zonal Interventional Squad was reported to have contacted a friend of the suspect, Giwa Monsuru, for help to make a voter card.

Monsuru, after collecting N5,000 from the policewoman, reportedly took her details to Abideen, who subsequently produced the card.

Monsuru was arrested when he went to deliver the job to the detective.

He subsequently led operatives to the office of the prime suspect, where laptops and other exhibits were recovered.

The two suspects were paraded on Monday at the Zone 2 Police Command, Onikan.

Abideen, who claimed to be married with two children, said he had only made two fake voter cards, adding that he didn’t know the business was against the law.

He said, “I am a printer and I have a business centre, where I make photocopies for people. I had scanned my INEC voter card just for fun when a friend of mine, Sodiq, asked me to reproduce it for him. I initially refused, but after he persisted, I did the job for him. That was three weeks ago.

“Later, Sodiq introduced me to Monsuru and asked me to assist him. Monsuru approached me last week to make a voter card for his sister, who needed it for money transfer. I did the job for him and he paid me N1,000. I didn’t know it was against the law.”

Monsuru, a National Diploma holder from a tertiary institution in Ibadan, Oyo State, said after Sodiq introduced him to Abideen, he started looking for people who needed voter card.

He said, “Last Thursday, a lady came to me that she needed a voter card I decided to go to Abideen’s office to do it. I collected N5,000 from her for the job.

“I gave her details to Abideen and gave him N1,000. After collecting the job from him, I saw policemen with the lady. I took them to Abideen’s office.”

The Zone 2 Police Public Relations Officer, SP Dolapo Badmos, said the police were on the trail of the third suspect, Sodiq, who is at large.

She said, “The ZIS got a tip-off that there is a man that specialises in printing voter card and immediately, the squad went on his trail.

“From all indication, the prime suspect has been doing this for a lot of people. The Assistant Inspector-General of Police, Adamu Ibrahim, has ordered discreet investigation into the incident.”