Stolen BRT bus found in Benue

 

                                   BRT buses File copy

A stolen BRT bus being operated in Lagos has been found in Gboko, Benue State, more than a week after it was declared missing.

 

The Lagos State Council of the National Union of Road Transport Workers, the operators of the BRT buses, said on Wednesday that the recovery was made possible by the police, with the assistance of its members in Jalingo, Taraba State.

The Chairman, Lagos State Caretaker Committee of the union, Mr. Akin James, said at a press briefing in Lagos, that the bus was driven away on November 13, without any traces of its whereabouts and its driver.

He said the driver had taken the bus, marked Lagos XW 370 GGE, out for the last Eid-el-Kabir operation on Sunday but failed to return it to the park after the close of business for the day.

He added that the bus movement was restricted to Lagos metropolis, adding that there was no record that the driver would take it outside Lagos.

James said, "The matter was reported to the police. We also sent signals to all our state councils throughout the federation about the theft of the bus.

"Our efforts paid off when one of our members who travelled to the North sighted the bus in Gboko, Benue State and our men in Taraba State were able to recover the stolen bus."

The bus driver, who was accused of stealing the vehicle, was allegedly attempting to sell it to an exporter in the northern city when the police apprehended him.

Although, he was said to have escaped, the police, acting on a tip-off, later arrested him in Lagos. He has been charged to court.

James said the recovered bus had been taken back to the union’s state secretariat at Abule-Egba.

He commended the police for their prompt intervention, the Lagos Metropolitan Area Transport Authority, the regulator of the BRT scheme and other stakeholders for their concern.

He said, "We want to use this opportunity to assure all the stakeholders in Lagos State that we are fully on the ground to ensure the success of the programme.

"The Lagos State Council with the support of the national headquarters of the union is ready to provide adequate security for the buses to prevent future occurrence."