At 11 pm, when the congregation of worshippers at Akeugbájesu, a Cherubim and Seraphim church in Ilora, Oyo State, were in a trance in their doxology shouting ‘Hallelujah’ repeatedly in the well-lit and ventilated atmosphere during the New Year’s eve in 2024, Stella Adelekan’s father dashed out of the church in his loose yellow gown with a waist tie (amùrè) when his attention was needed by the cooks outside to refill the exhausted gas from the cylinder.
“As an active member of the church who volunteered himself, no church task is too burdensome to him. In a matter of minutes, he mounted his newly bought but half-paid two-wheeler Boxer motorcycle along with a young female church member who helped him carry the cylinder and then zoomed off. We didn’t know it was his end,” Adelekan, the daughter of the deceased, recounted, sobbing and wiping her face intermittently.
Being a festive period, the road still maintained its usual bustle like a typical afternoon, but power had not been restored.
While Adelekan’s father was returning, three weapon-wielding men came out of the nearby bush and stopped him abruptly along the community commercial high school of the town, asking him to bring his motorcycle’s key.
“He argued with them for some time before one of them who seemed familiar shot him in the head with a pistol,” Adelekan recalled.
“They snatched his bike, which was on installment and still killed him. I don’t know why. Though we know a suspect, we decided not to take the matter up with the police so his corpse could be released on time for burial.
“I learnt that three similar cases happened that same day.”
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Bajaj Auto Ltd. is the brand name for the two-wheelers motorcycle produced in India.
The brand is the fourth largest manufacturer of two-wheelers and the largest manufacturer of three-wheelers across the world.
It is a leading brand in Peru, Mexico, Colombia, Egypt, the Philippines and many other countries. The company’s products hit Nigerian roads as early as 2005 when Jincheng, a Chinese brand which used to be motorcyclists’ favorite in the 2000s, was fading among the motorcyclists due to its high consumption of fuel.
Data obtained from the United States Customs Department shows that Bajaj Boxer is exported to 57 countries and Nigeria is the largest importer of the brand, which accounted for 54.86%, while Kenya accounted for 18.42% of the total export in Africa. This is due to its catchy features.
According to Bajaj Verma Co, a company that produces, repairs and sells spare parts of the motorcycle in Uganda, the two-wheeler has a special feature which differentiates it from other brands ranging from its reliability, ruggedness and repairability.
It has a reliable four stroke engine with Exhaust TEC system which leads to lesser wear and tear and delivers consistent performance. Its strong chassis, metal fenders and spring-in-spring suspension ensures a smooth ride, easier manoeuvrability and better grip in all road conditions.
One of the users, Gbenga Sarafadeen, who is a motorcyclist in Ikorodu, Lagos, said he would always choose Boxer because of its low consumption of fuel.
“If I buy one litre of fuel, I know how much I will make with just it. And besides it’s very light while riding. Everything about it makes me love it,” Sarafadeen remarked.
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THE SNATCHERS’ TACTICS
Mr Adelekan’s scenario was part of their tactics but his seemed direct.
According to observers, the snatchers use a cunning strategy, disguising themselves as commuters and approaching unsuspecting motorcyclists. They lure such individuals to hidden places before they are suddenly attacked. Sometimes, they use pepper spray or use a spike barricade on the road for any unyielding people.
“When Christmas was a few days away, one man coming from his farm at Olokiti in the late night was attacked by the armed men who were attempting to snatch his motorcycle immediately they saw an approaching vehicle with full light,” Gboyega Samuel, a fellow motorcyclist, narrated from the motorcycle park at Oja-Oke in Ilora.
“The man was brutally wounded with a machete, it was deep. He was groaning in a pool of blood until he was rushed to the hospital. I don’t know whether he later escaped death or not.”
The alarming rate of motorcycle snatching in rural and urban Nigeria has become a menace for bike owners and only a few of these cases received media and government attention. People have resorted to taking the law into their own hands.
In June 2022, two suspected motorcycle snatchers were set ablaze by an angry mob along Ijokodo Poly Road, in Ibadan North local government area of Oyo State. Also, in May 2023, another two snatchers were lynched at Popo Bridge, Oke Ado, of the city.
Eye witnesses who told Nigerian Tribune that the suspects were nabbed not long after they snatched the motorcycle from its owner.
In May 2024, the residents of Oye-Ekiti collaborated with a Divisional Police Headquarters in the Ekiti State to arrest one Bernard Shadrach along with his accomplices who were responsible for a string of motorcycle thefts. They were transporting the stolen bikes to the Northern part of the country to resell them.
Similarly, in October, operatives of the Ogun police command arrested three members of the motorcycle-snatching syndicate terrorising the Owode-Egba area of Obafemi Owode Local Government Area.
“The incessant occurrence of motorcycle theft and snatching in Nigeria highlights a systemic security crisis linked to organised theft networks exacerbated by socio-economic challenges such as unemployment and poverty which drive individuals towards criminal activities for survival,” says Attah-Olottah, Attach Jesse, Risk Operations and Intelligence Coordinator, Beacon Security and Intelligence Limited think tank in Abuja.
“Okada (motorcycles) are considered valuable assets due to their affordability and mobility advantages. Growing security threat trends suggest inadequate security measures, particularly in deterrence, detection and response, worsen the problems.”
However, according to a confession by motorcycle snatchers reported by DailyTrust in 2018, most of the snatched bikes were usually sold off at a meagre rate in strategic places like Ladipo Market, Oyingbo, Mushin and Ido in Lagos. Likewise, according to a Vanguard report from 2023, Amotekun Corps arrested two teenagers who stole a bike in Osun and sold it off at Ogunpa in Ibadan, Oyo State, before they were caught.
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No certain policy on motorcycle snatching, but people take measures
Findings show that Oyo and Lagos in the South West only have an existing law banning the influx of motorcycles. In 2020, the Oyo State government released a press statement pledging it would control the influx of commercial motorcycles in the state. Lagos State Government also banned motorcycles in some local areas in June 2022.
An email was sent to Rotimi Babalola, the Oyo Director of Press and Public Relations, to ask if there was any plan or policy to combat the incessant motorcycle snatching, but he was yet to respond at the time of filing this report.
Meanwhile, people have taken various security measures. Some motorcycle owners mold different key holes on their bikes. Others simply refuse to go out late at night anymore.
“Anytime past 8 pm, if you call me, I won’t go, no matter the amount,” Samuel said.
Attah-Olottah suggested that there should be a strong enforcement.
“To combat this incessant criminal act, enhanced law enforcement strategies require incorporating the three Ds and Rs imperatives for effective security management,” he said.
The three Ds and Rs in security are used to evaluate risk. They are the principles to reduce the probability of a risk incident through deterrence, detection and delay, as well as mitigate the severity of a risk incident through response, report and recovery.
