Wale Ajetunmobi
By Toyin Williams
A drama of unimaginable proportion reared its head as an official of the Ministry of Justice, Nasarawa State reportedly stole an iPhone
17 Pro Max belonging to Wale Ajetunmobi, a Senior Special Assistant (Media) to Lagos Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu.
The phone which cost typically ranges from ₦2,100,000 to over ₦4,500,000, depending on storage capacity was stolen at the just concluded National Convention of the All Progressive Congress, APC.
While recounting his ordeal,
Ajetunmobi said he found out that the phone was stolen returning to his hotel.
” I found out that my phone was stolen after arriving at my hotel. I opened my iPad and tracked the whereabouts of my missing iPhone 17 Pro Max. To my surprise, the device was already in Wuse Zone 6, about 8km away from Eagle Square where it was picked,” he said in his experience shared on his X handle.
“I called the phone repeatedly but no answer. I texted it, pleading, as it is my main workstation. The ‘Mover’ didn’t move. I could not sleep. I managed to sleep around 3:50am and woke up by 5:30am. After I prayed Fajr, I started tracking the iPhone again on my “Find My” app.”
His tracking of the device showed the phone was geo-located to a house in Wuse Zone 6 adding however that the map would not show the street name.
He went further, “I was curious. I placed a call to a top police officer in Abuja for help. He quickly contacted Mr. Victor Geoffrey, an Assistant Commissioner of Police and Commander of Scorpion Squad, Abuja, who immediately activated his team for recovery of the phone. The police team, led by Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) Isah Mohammed, started trailing and tracking the suspect who stole the phone… at 8:20am. At 10:50am, we tracked the iPhone to a location in Karu, near NNPC Filling Station.
“The policemen called me and asked me to join them. I was tracking from my iPad and the distance was closing in on the phone. At a roadside car lot close to Karu Bridge, my iPad beeped and showed my phone was close to where my driver (Mallam Idrissa) and I parked our vehicle.
“I came down and walked into the car lot; the 3D map of “Find My” app led me to a shield that looked like a makeshift mosque where some 15 people (mostly in their 50s) were sitting and chatting away. I pretended I wanted to pray. As I sat on a bench, then my iPad beeped and indicated the phone was exactly where I sat. I signaled at the police clad in mufti, who were stealthily following me, and they moved in.”
Ajetunmi said it was at that point that he witnessed real professionalism displayed by the policemen.
“I was impressed. They asked to see the Head of the car lot. An elderly man (looking 60s) came out and he was properly briefed about their mission. The car lot’s head confirmed the people sitting under the shield were coming from the Eagle Square after attending APC Convention but their extraordinary SUV (branded with the face of a governorship aspirant in Nasarawa State) had overheating issue. So, they had to stop by for repair before proceeding to Keffi.”
He said it was here the man informed the leader of the group of the presence of policemen and their mission. He said the leader of the group agreed they all be thoroughly searched.
- He continued, “After searching 5 persons, the next person to be searched started getting nervous. Lo and behold: my iPhone slipped out of Mahmoud Abdullahi’s trousers. The phone was off due to low battery. But I had my power bank with me to power it on. I was told to type my passcode; then the phone came alive. Mahmoud Abdullahi, who claimed to be working with Nasarawa State Ministry of Justice, stole my phone during the chaotic moment at the VVIP entrance of the Eagle Square. The suspect was arrested… Many thank to these highly professional men of Nigeria Police Force. This crime-busting team led by ASP Isah Mohammed comprises ASP Douglas Ishaku, Inspector John Emmanuel and Inspector Gana Mohammed. These guys are wonderful.
