A 28-year-old Nigerian woman living in the United Kingdom but with no fixed address has been arrested and sentenced to 2 years and 8 months imprisonment for committing a series of robberies and theft on buses in Hackney.
In one of her bus thefts, she was said to have robbed an 87-year-old man whom she sat next to on the bus and engaged him in a conversation before putting her hand in his pocket to grab around £80 in cash.
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Speaking with commuters shortly after her arrest, Detective Sergeant Coleman, the senior investigating officer from the Roads and Transport Policing Command, hailed the victims for coming forward to report the case and helping in the investigation process.
His words:
“Gloria Makanjuola was a prolific offender in the Hackney area. She targeted vulnerable passengers using the bus network system, committing robbery or theft offences. If bank cards were stolen, she used the opportunity to use the cards to make contactless payments at local stores.
“Working in partnership with the Safer Transport Teams and Transport for London, Makanjuola was identified and arrested for various robbery and theft-related offences. I would like to thank the victims in this investigation who had the courage to report these matters and assist in the police investigation. Without their support, this outcome would not have been possible.”
CCTV footage was obtained from the buses and Makanjuola was identified by the investigation team and Safer Transport Team officers A number of the victims were able to recognise Makanjuola during the course of formal identification parades. Detective Superintendent Andy Cox, the lead investigator for transport network crime across London, said;
“We are focused on targeting prolific criminals like Makanjuola who target and prey on the most vulnerable commuters. Through extensive CCTV coverage across the transport network, we are able to identify and bring offenders to justice.”
