Lawrence Anini

Lawrence Nomanyagbon Anini (c. 1960 – March 29, 1987) ^[1] was a Nigerian bandit who terrorised Benin City in the 1980s along with his sidekick Monday Osunbor. He was captured and executed for his crimes.

Life

Anini was born in a village about 20 miles from Benin City in present day Edo State. He migrated to Benin at an early age, learned to drive and became a skilled taxi driver. He became known in Benin motor parks as a man who could control the varied competing interests among motor park touts and operators. He later dived into the criminal business in the city and soon became a driver and transporter for gangs, criminal godfathers and thieves. Later on, he decided to create his own gang which include, Monday Osunbor, Ofege, and others, and they started out as car hijackers, bus robbers and bank thieves. Gradually, he extended his criminal acts to other towns and cities far north and east of Benin.

The complicity of the police is believed to have triggered Anini's reign of terror in 1986. In early 1986, two members of his gang called Kingsley alias Baba K and Kele were tried and prosecuted against an earlier under-the-table bribe induced agreement with the police to destroy evidence against the gang members. The incident, and Anini's view of police betrayal, is believed to have spurred retaliatory actions by Anini. On August, 1986, a fatal bank robbery linked to Anini was reported in which a police officer and a child were killed. That same month, two officers on duty were shot at a barricade while trying to stop Anini's car. During a span of three months, he was known to have killed 9 police officers. He wrote numerous letters to media houses using political tones of Robin Hood-like words to describe his criminal acts. Anini was once believed to be a spirit in possession of magical powers it was also believed that he could appear and disappear at will. On December 3, 1986, he was caught at a house in Benin City between 2nd and 3rd East Circular Road in the company of a girl friend. Anini was shot in the leg, transferred to a military hospital several days after he was shot in the leg, and had one of his legs amputated.^[2] The country's military leader, Ibrahim Babangida, demanded a speedy trial. Anini was convicted of most of his charges and was executed on March 29, 1987.,^[1] also his friend Monday osunbor, Ofege and other members of his gang, were sentenced to death. Some senior police officers were also sentenced to death in connection with the gang members activities because they were the one supplying them arms and ammunitions most notable of these officers was Asp George Iyamu.

References

• Marenin, Otwin (June 1987). "The Anini Saga: Armed Robbery and the Reproduction of Ideology in Nigeria". The Journal of Modern African Studies 25 (2): 259–281. doi:10.1017/S0022278X00000380. JSTOR 161014.