My father was a gambler, drug addict – Godogodo

Notorious South-West robbery czar, Abiodun Ogunjobi, aka, Godogodo, has said that lack of parental care was responsible for his becoming a  deadly robber.
Godogodo who has terrorized the zone for over 14 years, leading most bank robberies and other deadly operations, told Vanguard, yesterday, during an interview at the state Police Command headquarters, Ikeja, Lagos, that his parents abandoned him at an early age to fend for himself.
The 36-year-old man, who spoke in emotional laden voice, said he was the eldest of the children and his mother who he said was a sickler, died from her sickness.
My father was  a wayward man
“My father was a wayward man. He was a drug addict and a gambler. My mother was a sickler and she died after giving birth to my youngest brother.
“But my father, who got married to another woman, didn’t bother to take care of me. As a little child I struggled through primary school, picking bottles, iron and rubber from refuse dump.
“The little money I made from it was what I used in paying my school fees in primary school and after I graduated I went into the business of robbery fully.
“As a little boy I was sleeping on the street and my father didn’t care. All he cared about was to gamble away his money and take drugs.
“Gradually I started stealing and when I got of age I started robbing people at Katangura market, Iyana-Ipaja, but in 1999, I was arrested and sent to prison for fighting and when I came back some of the boys who were operating with me then had become big time robbers. I joined them and in one of our operations, I was shot in the eyes by some vigilante men that accosted us in Ogun State and I ended up losing one of my eyes.
“I would say after that incident I became tough and very careful. I don’t socialise, drink, smoke or go after women. I saw those things as weakness that could give out a tough man.
I have 3 children  from 3 women
“I have three children from three women. I ran away from my other wives because the police wanted to use them to arrest me.
“I also want to make it clear that I didn’t participate in all the robbery operations the police are accusing me of. People like me because I am not greedy, I make sure everybody gets their own share after a successful operation.
“Some of these boys also go out on their own to rob and when they are arrested they will tell the police that they are my boys.
“I can’t lie anymore, I have been arrested. All I want is for the police to give me a second chance. I will assist them arrest all the robbers in Lagos and South-West.”
Godogodo coordinated Ogun, Kwara robberies —Suspect
Meantime, a suspected robber, Felix Sunday, aka, K Money, who took part in two bank robberies in Kwara State and a bullion van robbery, in Ogun State, this year has said that Godogodo coordinated the robberies.
Sunday, who was arrested March 2013, after a deadly robbery attack at the Murtala Muhammed  International Airport, Lagos, where he and members of his gang killed two policemen and carted away huge sums of money from bureau de change operators at the airport, told Vanguard that on January 2013, Godogodo and his right hand man, Odun Paul, led them to rob in Oro town, Kwara State.
“We were 12 in number and we went for that operation with eight AK-47 rifles. We struck at the banks around 5pm that day and we started shooting indiscriminately. People ran away for safety and a member of the gang who is a dynamite expert blew open the bank doors with dynamite.
“We went into FirstBank and carted away all the money in it and afterwards we struck at the opposite bank and did the same.
“Nobody was killed in that operation because we operated unchallenged, after which we drove to Ondo State where we shared our loot.
“I got N500,000 as my share and I was happy.
“Few weeks after that operation, Godogodo called us for a bullion van operation.  We attacked the van along Ijebu-Ode Sagamu Road in Ogun State and opened fire on the van which was not armoured.
“We over-powered the policemen and took over the van containing both local and foreign currencies and we shared it.
“Godogodo was a source of inspiration to all of us and whenever we had him around in an operation, we don’t fear the police.
“He had the ability to confront the police and overpower them. We didn’t know he was going to be arrested this easily. He has boasted severally  that he is going to kill a lot of policemen whenever they come for him and he did not care dying before his arrest. I don’t know how the police did it but Godogodo is tough.”


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