The Lagos State Traffic Management Authority, during an enforcement operation, has arrested six notorious one-chance robbery gangs believed to be operating under the Ijora bridge in the state.
According to a Friday statement signed by the agency spokesperson, Taofiq Adebayo, the operation was carried out during a joint inter-agency enforcement exercise targeted at dismantling illegal garages and parks operated by commercial transporters, as well as the removal of unauthorised shanties and criminal hideouts around Apapa Road, Costain, and Ijora under bridge.
The operation, led by the Special Adviser to the Governor on Transportation, Honourable Sola Giwa, featured a strong coalition of enforcement operatives drawn from the Nigeria Police Force, Mobile Police, Lagos State Task Force, Lagos State Environmental Sanitation Corps, and the Nigerian Army.
The statement reads, “In a decisive and meticulously coordinated enforcement operation reflective of the Lagos State Government’s unflinching commitment to public safety, environmental restoration, and crime deterrence, the Lagos State Traffic Management Authority (LASTMA) on Thursday, 23rd of October, 2025 apprehended six suspected members of a notorious “one-chance” syndicate operating beneath the Ijora Bridge corridor of Lagos.
“The arrest, effected during a joint inter-agency enforcement exercise targeted at dismantling illegal garages and parks operated by commercial transporters, as well as the removal of unauthorized shanties and criminal hideouts around Apapa Road, Costain, and Ijora under bridge, yielded substantial recoveries. Confiscated items included 77 assorted mobile phones, 2 POS machines, multiple wristwatches, and other personal effects believed to have been forcibly taken from unsuspecting commuters and pedestrians.”
The statement further stated that preliminary investigations revealed that the Ijora under-bridge axis had long served as a criminal enclave, accommodating miscreants, illegal traders, and “one-chance” syndicates who specialize in orchestrated theft, violent assaults, and dispossession of innocent citizens. The area had also evolved into a clandestine storage hub for stolen valuables and contraband goods.
It added, “During the operation, enforcement personnel also discovered and confiscated several kegs of adulterated diesel and over 150 packs of expired plantain chips and Cheese Balls, which were being hoarded under unsanitary conditions posing grave threats to public health and the environment.
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“In addition, the joint task team successfully demolished over 120 illegal shanties, including structures erected along the perimeter fence of St. Peter’s Catholic Nursery and Primary School, Apapa Road, thereby reclaiming the area’s urban integrity and restoring its aesthetic order.”
The syndicates apprehended have been identified as: Adetunji Bashiru (28 years), Sulaiman Kada (35 years), Abubakar Bala (42 years), Abubakar Ahmed (28 years), Rasaq Gbadamosi (21 years), and Ibrahim Yakub (23 years).
TVC previously reported that the Lagos State Government has inaugurated a 24-hour traffic management and enforcement system across the state while reclaiming key transport corridors in Apapa, Coastain, and Ijora from illegal occupation and environmental infractions.
The initiatives, launched by the Lagos State Traffic Management Authority (LASTMA), mark a major step in the state’s effort to improve mobility, enhance safety, and restore order on its roads.
This was contained in a statement by the Director, Public Affairs and Enlightenment Department, LASTMA, Adebayo Taofiq, on Friday, October 24.
Lagos Launches 24-Hour Traffic Management Operations, Clears Apapa, Coastain, Ijora
