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By Emeka Chiaghanam 

Every generation has its share of historical figures marked by menace, particularly those rogues who earned notoriety through banditry. Some of these individuals evoke fear and chills at the mere mention of their names, yet they have also attained a peculiar kind of fame. Their audacious exploits may seem like folklore to later generations, but beneath the fables, they were human beings too.

 The criminal elements highlighted here are among the most notorious in Nigeria's history. They terrorized the nation, and their infamy spread beyond its borders. I recall the men who made people shiver with fear when their names were spoken in hushed tones.

LAWRENCE ANINI

In one of the Armed Forces Ruling Council meetings in 1986, President Ibrahim Babangida, concerned about the elusive nature of Anini, asked the Inspector General of Police, Etim Inyang, “My friend, where is Anini?” General Babangida mandated him to capture Anini, either dead or alive.

Anini's notoriety had escalated to a national security concern. In the 1980s, no name instilled fear in old Bendel State (now Delta and Edo States) and its surroundings quite like Lawrence Anini.

In many instances, people took cover when word spread that Anini was approaching. The fear of Anini was so palpable that security operatives often abandoned their posts at the hint of his arrival.                                   

Born Lawrence Nomanyagbon Anini, he rechristened himself ‘Anini the Law,’ or simply ‘The Law.’ Some referred to him as the ‘Robbers' Robber.’ Regardless of the name or title, Anini was a bandit whose mere mention struck terror into the hearts of many. He became larger than life, and myths of his supposed invisibility began to circulate.

Anini, the celebrity armed robber, operated his gang with the help of Monday Osunbor, his ruthless deputy. Inspector George Iyamu was the third member of Anini’s gang and a senior police officer whose involvement contributed to Anini’s criminal success.

Inspector Iyamu supplied intelligence and arms to Anini’s gang, while other notable members included Friday Ofege, Henry Ekponwan, Phillip Iwebelue, and Prince Kingsley Eweka.

Initially, ‘Anini the Law’ was not a bandit. He left his village for Benin City in search of a better life at a young age. In Benin City, he learned to drive and became a skilled taxi driver, eventually getting involved with gangs and thieves.                              

He mastered the intrigues and dynamics of motor parks in Benin City, becoming known as a man who could control the competing interests among motor park touts and operators in the city. He later formed his gang by recruiting Monday Osunbor and others.

Anini and his gang began to snatch cars, rob buses and banks, extending their criminal activities beyond Benin City. Anini's reign of terror intensified in 1985 when he infiltrated the Bendel State Police, recruiting Inspector George Iyamu and others who provided weapons and intelligence.

A deal gone wrong with the police heightened the gang's reign of terror. In early 1986, two members of his gang, Kingsley (alias Baba K) and Kele, were prosecuted despite an earlier agreement with the police to destroy evidence against them. Anini felt betrayed and vowed to retaliate.

The first major casualty of the gang’s attacks occurred in August 1986 when they struck First Bank in Sabongida-Ora, making off with a mere N2,000. The robbery left a trail of blood, with a police officer and several others killed. In a separate incident that month, Anini murdered two police officers on duty who attempted to stop his car.

Anini and his gang struck again on September 6, 1986, when they snatched a Peugeot 504 from Albert Otoe, the driver of Assistant Inspector General of Police Christopher Omeben. Otoe was killed in the process, and three months later, his skeleton was discovered 16 kilometers away from Benin, along the Benin-Agbor highway.

Despite his criminality, Anini displayed a softer side at times. After a robbery, he threw wads of naira notes on the ground for market men and women to pick up freely, reminiscent of a Robin Hood figure.

                                                

Acting on a tip-off, Anini, once believed to possess magical powers that allowed him to appear and disappear at will, was caught on December 3, 1986, at a house in Benin City, where he was hiding with a girlfriend. When the police knocked on the door, Anini opened it but attempted to outsmart the police. He was shot in the leg, which was later amputated. Throughout his trial, Anini used a wheelchair. He was convicted and executed on March 29, 1987.

  ISHOLA OYENUSI

                            

It can be challenging to view armed robbers as romantic or chivalrous figures. However, love can drive individuals to extreme measures, even in cold blood. Such was the case with Ishola Oyenusi’s first robbery. He snatched a relatively inexpensive car on Herbert Macaulay Road in Yaba, Lagos, killing the owner in cold blood. He sold the car and gave the proceeds to his financially struggling girlfriend.

While many Nigerians remember Lawrence Anini and Shina Rambo as the most famous armed robbers, Ishola Oyenusi was the first celebrated armed robber in Nigeria. His reign of terror caused more havoc than that of Lawrence Anini.

Oyenusi, often referred to as Nigeria’s king of gangsters, confessed to joining the armed robbery business in 1959. He operated in Lagos and its surroundings, coming into the limelight after the Nigerian Civil War ended in 1970. Oyenusi and his gang of six robbed banks and civilians in both daylight and nighttime, never allowing any of their victims to survive.

Dr. Oyenusi, as he styled himself, aspired to be a medical doctor but didn’t complete his secondary education due to his parents' inability to fund further schooling. He lived up to his nickname ‘Dr. Rob and Kill,’ as he was known to kill indiscriminately, even for trivial reasons.

In March 1971, the Nigerian Police arrested Oyenusi and his gang after they robbed the WAHUM factory in Ikeja, Lagos, resulting in the death of a police constable.

After organizing and leading numerous deadly armed robbery attacks in Lagos and other cities in southwestern Nigeria, Oyenusi was apprehended by a police officer who recognized him in his home in Ibadan.

On the day of Oyenusi and his gang’s execution, over 30,000 Nigerians flocked to Bar Beach in Victoria Island, the execution site. Even years after his execution, people still feared his name. In 1977, when veteran movie director Eddie Ugbomah sought actors to portray Oyenusi in a movie titled ‘The Rise and Fall of Dr. Oyenusi,’ potential actors were too scared to accept the role. 

                                         

They feared that the remaining members of Oyenusi’s gang would hunt them down. Ugbomah received threatening letters, and his store was looted. Undeterred, he eventually released the movie in 1977.

                                                              SHINA RAMBO

                                          

Many believed the Shina Rambo movie was merely a fictional character. In reality, Shina Rambo’s banditry was more notorious than movies portrayed. On one occasion, he and his gang robbed 40 luxury cars in a single day, driving them in convoy from Lagos to Cotonou, while security operatives took cover from his approach.

Rambo, a tall, dark-skinned man standing at 6 feet 5 inches, terrorized southwestern Nigeria in the 1990s. He carried out his operations in broad daylight, armed with sophisticated weapons, bullet belts, and explosives strapped to him. Rambo operated between Nigeria and Benin Republic, focusing his activities primarily between Lagos and Cotonou.

Born into a polygamous family with a soldier father, Rambo was influenced by his father's dubious lifestyle. He used his military connections to rob innocent citizens, often bringing home large sums of money. Unlike Anini and Oyenusi, who were captured and executed, much of the information surrounding Shina Rambo remains anecdotal. Various stories circulate about how he became involved in robbery.

According to Rambo, “I remember when I was about seven years old; my father came home with a lot of money—foreign currency—with blood on it, using something like a woman’s scarf to wipe it. I asked him if it was animal's blood or human blood, but he wouldn’t answer; they were drinking, smoking, and merry-making.”

He began by robbing houses, then transitioned to stealing expensive vehicles on the highway and targeting financial institutions. Many believed the police couldn't catch him because he used charms to protect himself during his criminal endeavors.

Speculation about Rambo's fate grew when he disappeared. Some argued that a gang member killed him, while others claimed the police shot him during a robbery. Still, another version suggested that he was captured, tried, and sentenced to 11 years in prison, although no proof supports any of these claims.

A Christian evangelical pastor, who identified himself as Mathew Oluwanifemi, claimed to be the former notorious figure Shina Rambo, asserting that he had turned his life around to serve God. However, while many argued that Pastor Oluwanifemi was indeed the same Shina Rambo who once instilled fear in people's hearts, others disagreed with this assertion.