The suspects, Ogbonnaya Nwite and John Abbah were picked up in their homes and led to their replicating studios in Alaba market, where about three-bus load of unauthorised movie titles were recovered.
The arrest followed a tip-off and subsequent sweep on the market, an acclaimed hub of piracy activities, by popular film marketers; Mr. Gabriel Okoye, aka Igwe Gabosky and Mr. Norbert Ajaegbu with the assistance of Inspector General of Police (IGP) Mr. Solomon Arase’s team from the Area E Command, Lagos.
The team also sought the assistance of a filmmaker, Paul Okoli, who used to own a shop in Alaba, and understands the terrain.
Gabosky and Ajaebgu described the two suspects, said to hail from Ebonyi State as masterminds of video piracy in Nigeria, adding that the suspects are currently being questioned at the Area E Police station.
Recall that film pirates in Alaba market are known to have confronted the law enforcement agents that have attempted to arrest suspects in the past. The new development, according to Gabosky was made possible by new officers in various official positions.
“You remember that the IG directed the Lagos State Commissioner of Police, who in turn sent signals to all the police units in Lagos State to assist. Area E Command where Alaba falls under has been on top alert for the war. The Area E Commander, Mr Owolabi, has been carrying out this duty with the help of a no-nonsense officer called Supol Nwanyanwu. They need to be commended. All these are made possible by the will power of the new NCC head of Lagos, Bar Ezeilo and his officer, Dare,” Gabosky explained.
Analysts have described the new development as the beginning of a real legal battle against intellectual property theft, as Obasi’s arrest happened two days after the Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, during a meeting with stakeholders in the film industry, declared war against pirates.
