Video clips obtained by FIJ have shown a man going around hospitals in Lagos State to steal mobile phones.
FIJ learnt that when the doctor’s phone he stole on Saturday at Royan Hospital in the Berger area was called, the thief demanded N50,000 to return it. He also claimed that his son was in a general hospital and he needed money to pay his bills.
A source who does not want to be named told FIJ that when the thief’s account number was requested, he refused to disclose the details probably out of fear that he would be traced.
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“Then he was asked for a physical location where they could pay him in exchange for the stolen phone, but he did not budge. He said they would see his face. He later switched off the phone because they could not reach him anymore,” said the source.
“We learnt that he requested to see the managing director of the hospital when he arrived. He was upstairs and waited for a long time in the reception hall.
“Even when he was told that the MD was busy and not available, he tried to enter the office. I think he saw that everyone was busy, but he was stopped from entering. That was when he went downstairs to steal a doctor’s phone. No one imagined that he was a thief. It was later that we heard this same man had gone to other hospitals to steal.”
FIJ also gathered that before the most recent incident on Saturday, the man had stolen phones from at least two other hospitals.
According to FIJ’s source, the culprit went to one as early as 7:00 am and got away with a nurse’s phone and the other hospital on October 10, where he stole another phone.
“In all of these three incidents, the CCTV captured him, and people are now seriously on the lookout for him,” disclosed the source.
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In the footage of the October 10 incident, the man with a potbelly is seen entering an office with his phone held to his ear. As he enters the office, he goes close to a table, tries to open the drawer and looks around him furtively. He opens the drawer, picks up a smartphone and hides it in his side pocket before hurrying out.
The second video also shows the man pretending to be on a phone call. He approaches an office and peeps through the door before stretching his hand in an attempt to probably pick up the phone. Then he pauses, takes a step back and looks around to avoid being caught in the act. Upon sensing that no one is near, he enters the office and is successful in the phone theft after which he exits the area.
The post VIDEO: CCTV Clips Show Serial Phone Thief Targeting Lagos Hospitals appeared first on Foundation For Investigative Journalism.