An Ilorin Magistrate Court has sentenced a 26-year-old bus conductor, Rasaq Sikiru of Kankantu Area, Ilorin, to two years imprisonment for belonging to a gang of thieves.

Sikiru appeared before Magistrate S.O. Sambo on a two-count charge of belonging to a gang of thieves and possession of items suspected to have been stolen.

He was arrested on April 26 by a team of vigilante men having suspected to belong to a gang of thieves, while he could not give account of himself and two handsets found in his possession.

Prior to his arrest, one Alhaji Oniye Shuaibu of No. 25, Osin Aremu Street, Asa-Dam Area, Ilorin, had alleged that on April 25 some suspected hoodlums invaded his residence and attempted to steal his Toyota Camry car.

The suspected thieves were said to have failed in their operation due to the timely intervention of the vigilante men and some youths in the area, as a result of which they abandoning the car and escaped.

Police First Information Report (FIR) on the matter stated that in the course of investigation at the Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS), Ilorin, the convict confessed that he belongs to a gang of thieves.

He also revealed the names of other gang members to be Yinusa Omo-Eko, Baba Lukman and Araobale now at large.

The FIR added further that a Jincheng Motorcycle with registration number OY 5124 HC valued at N70,000 and two Nokia 200 handsets valued at N30,000 which were recovered from him were stolen by him and one Yinusa Omo-Eko now at large at Oja-Iya area from an unknown person.

The prosecutor, Sergeant Isaac Yakubu prayed the court to give Sikiru summarily trial since he pleaded guilty to the offences.

Magistrate Sambo, who granted the oral application of the prosecution, sentenced the convict to two years imprisonment without option of fine.

The court also ordered that the convict should be given 20 strokes of cane at the court premises.