I Needed Money to Save my Wife's Life

 A pipeline vandal, Owoye Ebiwe, was recently arrested while siphoning petroleum product from a pipeline belonging to the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC, in Elekete area of Ogun State.

The Vanguard reports that the suspect while being paraded by operatives of the Inspector-General of Police Special Task Force on Anti-Pipeline Vandalism Unit was seen scribbling undecipherable words on the ground before raising up his heads and shedding tears.

The native of Ondo State later confessed:
“ As I speak with you, my wife is dying in the hospital back in Ondo state. She needs money for treatment. You see, I ventured into this all in a bid to save my wife. I am an orphan. I have been struggling to make ends meet without making any headway.    I have five children but lost one recently because of lack of  fund to provide medicare. And now, my wife is on danger list. If she dies, tell me, who will take care of the children? She was initially taken to the hospital but because there was no money to pay for the drugs, we had to bring her home to administer local herbs on her.

“In trying to suggest a possible solution, one of my relatives, asked me to come down to Lagos;  that there was a business that would fetch me money to take care of my wife and family. Without asking what type of business, I borrowed some money and left Ondo on Sunday, for Lagos. When I met him, he just said I should follow him to the place and like an obedient servant, I did, until I found myself in the creeks. That was when he informed me that some people would soon come with boats and jerrycans;  that all I needed to do was to wait by the shore and bring the jerrycans out of the boats. The place was like a market place because I saw other people waiting for their members too.

“That was when it dawned on me that it was vandal business. Honestly, I did not know it was a big offense. All I was told was that I would be given a reasonable amount at the end of the day.  That my relative told me he had money to buy the products; that all I needed to do was to bring the jerrycans out of the canoes and also help to sell to ready buyers at the end of which payment would be determined on the quantity sold.

I was there with him and Luke, waiting for the arrival of the boats when we were rounded up by the police. You can now see why I have been crying”.

According to the Unit's Commander, Friday Ibadin, the suspect will be charged to court soon.