A 15-year-old boy who wanted to celebrate the New Year with pomp by stealing from God was not only arrested by God, the owner of the stolen item, but he may not even have the opportunity of walking freely throughout the year.

James Friday (not real name), on December 31, 2011 went to the residence of the Superintendent Pastor of Qua Iboe Church, Eket, Akwa Ibom State, to steal some money. The money he was caught trying to steal was N5,000 and the church’s tithe. He could not find his way out of the pastor’s room until he was arrested.

He was one of those paraded at the state police headquarters, Ikot Akpanabia, by Commissioner of Police Solomon Arase, represented by the assistant commissioner of police in charge of criminal investigation, Mr Donald Awunah.

But James was not new in crime. Maybe, that was the day his cup ran over. Based on his personal confession, he and a gang of four other boys had been robbing people in the past. But while the others might have retired just before the New Year, James’s Oliver Twist tendencies compelled him to carry on. And he didn’t mind stealing from God. The police said they were closing in on the other four members of the gang who are still at large.

As if stealing from the pastors’ houses was the vogue toward the end of the last year, one Kingstone Eden (not real name), was also paraded for breaking into the residence of Pastor Titus Inverse of Christ Embassy, Eket, and stealing an I-pad and blackberry mobile phone. He was arrested, and other incriminating items recovered from him including one Nokia X2 phone, one Nokia N8 phone, one Nokia E63 phone and another nondescript phone.
But he was not alone, his accomplices (names witheld), who were the receivers of the stolen items are now sharing the cell space with him. Also on parade was one Godson Samson (not real name), said to have been arrested at Eket for burgling and stealing the jewelleries of one Alhaji Yahaha Mohammed.

But it was not only the petty thieves that met their waterloo. Cultists or potential cultists were also unlucky as they were arrested at the point of their initiation, Uyo ravine, on January 13, 2012. Eight of them were arrested.
Also put on parade was one Davous Eguwowo (not real name), said to have been arrested with one brown pistol No. BDA 380425PM53327. It was alleged he attempted to use on unsuspecting members of the public at Ikot Use market square, in Etim Ekpo Local Government area.

Off all those paraded, one Essiet Akpan’s (not real name) case seemed baffling. He was alleged to have tried to kill one man of Mbiabong village in Uyo, by inflicting machete cuts on his head and body before pushing him into a river to drown. He also dispossessd the victim of his clothes, N40,000 and a phone. He followed it up by duping the unsuspecting wife of the victim of N200,000. The police set a trap for him into which he fell while trying to collect the balance of the money.

Incidentally, most of those on paraded were in their teens, which might have made the police to charge parents and guardians to closely monitor the activities of their children/wards and ensure that they were not used as willing tools by desperate criminal elements in causing public disorder.
Most of the suspects while speaking with The Sun confessed to partaking of the crimes they were accused of. Some of them claimed they were innocent and not knowing why they were arrested.