As It Is In The Loony Bin, So It Is In The Chambers

Submitted into Contest #123 in response to: Write a story about a character practising a speech in front of the mirror. What are they preparing for?... view prompt

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Fiction Romance Crime

I heard that the people who found romance in the pages of Mills and Boon can’t speak the words of their own. I don’t know how true that assertion is for I don’t know Mills and Boon and I don’t know romance.

If ever I am force to make a choice, I will for sure lean on the part of the assertion. How else would you explain the fact that almost all our public figures are victims of that very act, not only those in love or in search of it but our politicians should be the yardstick to measure that assertion if you are interested.

President Obama came to power using social media in order to get to his grassroots supporter. Today, social media is in Vogue with our politicians as it has never been and most is following verbatim Obama steps which wasn’t working for them . Some turned it into battle arena where their opponents are threatened.

What you are about to hear is the incident that happened in my in-laws lawyer office one certain morning we went to see him. My in-law was having this land dispute with people he bought a land from.

You know, some societies can be useless and worthless at the same time depending on who is doing the weighing. Duping has become a culture in this country that any one that falls victims is not even deemed to require protection of the police or law.

If you’re wondering how the country have degenerated into the state it is now, maybe you have been away for long. The place is over flowing with crooks for long now. The good, bad and the ugly. If you follow me to the end, I assure you of being wiser afterwards.

Imagine the latest that is circulating in the news this week. The kidnappers are getting wiser and wiser each day. Before, they used to operates with their own bank accounts in receiving ransom money from their victims families stupidly, police continued to nab them easily using their BVN.

They are wiser than the officers nowadays. How?

Brother, this guys kidnapped one prominent lady in Abuja Nigerian capital, while they were negotiating over there with the victims family, their gangs in another region were busy following up their own part of the operation. 

These guys went to a car dealer negotiating the price of a Toyota Corolla for three days. They were told it was 5 million naira. Two days later, they asked the dealer for his bank details to pay in the money. He gave them. They sent the details to their gang at Abuja who forwarded the details to their victims family to pay in the three million agreed ransom. Two days later, they went back to the car dealer with the story of not being able to complete the money, since they have suffered him he should keep four hundred thousand and return two-point- six millions back to them. The poor dealer was over joyed of making easy money. He took them to the bank and withdrew their money and gave them.

They apologized for unconvincing him. A day later, police arrested the car dealer who narrated all that happened. The kidnapped lady was used as insurance to buy time. They knew that the officers were still banking on their BVN investigation method. They believed that the kidnappers weren’t studying them and their methods too.

The officers had thought that the four hundred thousand was the car dealers share of the deal till they found out that the man is just a chump.

The kidnappers outsmarted them both. The officers was counting on the greed and stupidity of the kidnappers. They believed that they would not sacrifice such amount to cover their tracks. Well, they did. 

The officers found out that they were the ones that needed to turn to TV, movies and novels to catch up like the politicians that have covered every space in social media.

“The public is hereby warned of the new method the kidnappers are into these days. You needs to protect yourselves” ------ Police PRO

You see what I mean by the country overflowing with criminals?

The story behind this incident is still being doubted by the public. They asked the police to tell Nigerian exactly what happened. They are insinuating that it wasn’t the undergraduates but officers that were behind that caper. 

“This is Nigeria Police and we are all Nigerians. If it isn’t officers that were behind that caper, they would not have released the car dealer.” Some said.

You see the type of faith the public has on the security apparatus of the nation?

Emm, I hope I have not digressed so much out of line of my in-law’s land issue and what led us to his lawyer’s Chambers.

Well, the officers were after the kidnappers Maybe because they are call kidnappers. Maybe, they need to tell us what’s different between the kidnappers and the one you are about to hear concerning my in-law?--- both concerns millions and act to reap where one didn’t sow.

So, this tribe is in the habit of selling one land to multiple buyers and the whole town would support the dealer when police got involved. But the officers usually claims that it is court issue not police. It is the case in my in-laws issue.

My in-law knew in advance that that tribe is notorious for such scheme demanded for the police assistance just to be sure he wasn’t made a victim. The officers were paid for their services and came with paper they made the dealer to sign.

   ‘This papers covered the deal. He won’t’ be able to play any games with us'  the officers assured.

On the appointed day, the police followed as promised and truly made the man to sign the papers. Could you believed that not up to three weeks after that transaction of eleven millions, the same land was sold to another person for nine millions with police special cover papers being signed too.

When my in-law confronted the speculator, he claimed that the signature on the deed isn’t his, that he has never seen my in-law. Officers were called, they claimed to have misplaced the papers, that the case is actually a court case not police.

My in-law contacted his lawyers who gave us appointment.

So, we went on the appointed day. On getting to the man Chambers, no one was in front office not even his receptionist. After some minutes, we decided to check at the back of the building were his inner office is situated. 

We have just rounded the corners when we heard the man shouting. We stopped to know what is happening. 

He was saying: “ My Lord, this is miscarriage of justice. It is against section 309 of the Constitution and section 419 of the penal codes. We can……”

We thought the man was having meeting with some people, but when we looked through the open window, he was standing alone in front of mighty mirror mounted on the wall there, talking to his image.

On sighting us, he stopped.

“O!, Sorry, I am just preparing for a case in court. Please, wait for me at the waiting room, I will join you in minutes”

As we turned to head back toward the route we came, the shouting increased.

December 03, 2021 20:39

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