Despite Police Efforts, “One Chance” Persists In FCT

It has become one week one story of a victim of “one chance”, which means ‘falling victim to robbers in commercial vehicles, who attack, steal and sometimes kill their victims’.

One of the latest victims, Eneh Onoja, who spoke with me, said she entered a vehicle after the close of work at Central Area Abuja and just after a few minutes, the man sitting next to her began hitting her with all kinds of dangerous equipment. 

She says at the initial stage, she didn’t understand what was happening and tried to shout, but the man subdued her with the help of other passengers, who were obviously his members. The criminals forced her to call her people to send her money after they had withdrew all she had in her account with POS. 

She was eventually thrown out of the car after over two hours of harrowing experience with them. Just recently, a human resources consultant, and member of the Yali network in Abuja, Greatness Olorunfemi died at Maitama General Hospital after she was attacked by these criminals.

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Olorunfemi lost her life after being left untreated at the hospital due to the absence of a police report, following a traumatic encounter with a one-chance driver. This has made the inspector-general of police, IGP Kayode Egbetokun, to direct all hospitals to treat victims of accidents, attacks and gunshot wounds with or without police report. 

Force PRO, ACP Olumuyiwa Adejobi said the IGP’s directive aligns with the full enforcement of the Compulsory Treatment and Care for Victims of Gunshot Act of 2017, which mandates that all healthcare providers prioritise the immediate care and stabilisation of such patients, recognising the critical importance of timely medical attention in saving lives.

The commissioner of police FCT, CP Haruna Garba said the operatives of the command have developed a strategy to combat “one chance” criminal operations in Abuja.Just last week, the commissioner said the operatives of the newly created Operation Sting and Anti-One Chance squad in an effort to rid the city of one chance activities, carried out coordinated operations and impounded nine tinted vehicles suspected to be used for one chance activities. 

The vehicles impounded include: Red Golf with Reg. No. ABJ 897 DC;White Peugeot 206 with Reg. No. JJJ 638; Ford Vita Black with Reg. No RBC 567 MK; Nissan Almeira with Reg. No. AWK 260 IB; Toyota Corolla Gold in Colour with Reg. No. ABJ 590 AE; Mazda 323 Protege with Reg. No. RBC 258 XC; Toyota Corolla Gold in colour with Reg. No. LD 364; Toyota Corolla with Reg. No. YAB 561 EH Black in colour; and a vehicle with Reg. No. ABJ 597 TH.