Crime
Man Decries Police Siding Robbers, Despite Video, Other Evidences
A Lagos based businessman, Mohammed Abdullahi, is lamenting that operatives of the Nigeria Police Force (NPF) have been lethargic or rather cooperating with instead of apprehending the robbers, who raided the Awoyaya community, in the Ibeju Lekki sometime in 2022.
According to Abdullahi, the gang violently robbed him and his neighbours at their residence and he lost his car, money and valuables worth N21m when armed criminals.
The realtor, has taken to microblogging site, X to lament that men of the Zone 2 Command and Lagos State Police Command have been rather lackadaisical in tracking down the undesirable elements, despite being provided with overwhelming evidence, including video clips.
In one of the posts, Abdullahi said, “Please Nigerians, help me share this video. these are the guys that robbed me and the police are not ready to do anything about my case.”
According to The PUNCH, the realtor disclosed that he was at home with his friend, Juliet, when three of the five robbers who invaded their building broke down the door of his flat, gained entry into his parlour and room and robbed him and his guest of their valuables at gunpoint.
During the operation around 1 am, the businessman said the armed robbers used a gun to strike his head, adding that after robbing him and other neighbours in the building housing 20 units of flats, the robbers, whose faces were said to be visible during the robbery, locked them up in the toilets and fled.
Abdullahi said, “They were five in number but only three entered my apartment while the remaining were outside monitoring. They were armed with guns and knives. While in my flat, one of them cocked the gun and demanded my car key, which I gave him.
“They also searched my house and saw a bag containing my passport with a valid visa, driving licence, and dollars that I wanted to use to purchase goods for my real estate business as I was to travel to Turkey in January 2023.
“They also stole my clothes, shoes, laptop, token, ATM card, gold, phone and some other documents for my business. They broke the door of my flat and gained entry, proceeded to my room and knocked down the door. The building is a combination of 20-unit flats and the armed robbers robbed nine residents, including me, on that day.”
During the operation, Abdullahi recalled that one of his neighbours informed the landlady, who in turn notified the police in Area J Command.
He decried that despite their intervention, no meaningful progress had been made to track down the suspects.
He said, “The armed robbers operated from 1 am to 3 am, locked all of us who were robbed inside the toilet or kitchen and left. It was after they left that the police came and opened the toilet and kitchen doors to set us free. We were later invited to the police station where we wrote statements.
“When we got home, we realised that some of the suspects were using some of the stolen phones to access the UBER app on one of the phones to book a ride and snap pictures using the Snapchat handle of one of my neighbours. They had access to the phone because when they stole it, they collected the password to unlock it and we monitored the social media handle using another phone.
“The suspects even wore one of my neighbour’s stolen wristwatches and snapped pictures with it. We recognised them because when they robbed us, they did not wear any masks. We took all that evidence to the policemen at Area J and we also paid N90,000 to track the location of the stolen phones.”
According to Abdullahi, they did the tracking and showed us some locations but we didn’t get anything concrete. One of the policemen even demanded N30,000 from me to give someone at Alausa to help me flag my car and didn’t do anything despite paying him.
He added that he was the one who later went to flag the car and to date, he still receives alerts whenever his vehicle was charged for a traffic offence, among others.
Abdullahi said, “I later visited the command headquarters in Ikeja to lodge another complaint and spoke with one CSP Abdulfatai, gave him all the evidence and pictures of the suspects and he promised to arrest them. He called one of his team leaders, Seun, and told me to meet him to write statements.
“Seun demanded N50,000 for the case and I gave him. A month after paying him, I called Seun and he said there was an election and he wouldn’t be able to do anything. After the election, I called CSP Abdulfatai, he said he had retired.
“I called Seun but got nothing meaningful from him. I demanded my money and he returned it. I later went to the Zone 2 Command, met the AIG, wrote a petition and he assigned my case to a team leader. The team leader, after assessing my case, said they didn’t have the server to track the suspects.”
Abdullahi said the team lead introduced him to someone who demanded N500,000 to handle the case, adding that he paid the person N150,000 but he later returned N70,000, showed him some paperwork and said he couldn’t continue the job.
“It weakened me; despite all the evidence submitted, the police kept demanding money without doing any solid investigation. Last month, I still even received an autoreg and traffic offence alert for my stolen vehicle because I had flagged it.
“The police frustrated the case. They didn’t do anything to track down the suspects; they just kept collecting money and only showed paperwork and nothing more. The police treated me badly.
“The valuables I lost during the robbery were worth around N21m. The incident happened on December 25, 2022, and I still have the pictures of some of the suspects. I have made several reports at the police stations and nothing was done,” he added.
A 45-year-old woman, Mrs. Oluchi Ugbowan, has been arrested by the Edo State Police Command for allegedly orchestrating her own kidnapping in a desperate attempt to extort N50 million from her family.
Police said the suspect, alongside three accomplices, staged an elaborate kidnapping drama, complete with videos showing her bound and allegedly held captive, in a bid to convince relatives that she had fallen into the hands of kidnappers.
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The Edo State Police Command disclosed on Tuesday that the scheme was uncovered following a complaint lodged by Mrs. Ugbowan’s husband, Mr. Tony Ugbowan, who reported that his wife had been kidnapped while on her way to her shop at Ramat Park along Agbor Road in Benin City.
According to police spokesperson ASP Eno Ikedem, the husband told investigators that he had received a call from an unknown individual using a concealed phone number, demanding a ransom of N50 million for his wife’s release.
The report prompted operatives of the Anti-Kidnapping Unit to launch an intensive investigation, combining intelligence gathering and technical tracking to uncover the truth behind the alleged abduction.
The breakthrough came with the arrest of one Israel Ability, 28, at Ramat Park, Agbor Road, Benin City. During the operation, detectives recovered a mobile phone belonging to the supposed victim.
Police said Ability later confessed during interrogation that the kidnapping was staged and that he had been recruited by Mrs. Ugbowan to negotiate ransom payments with her family while pretending she had been abducted.
Further investigations led officers to a hotel in Ukwuani Local Government Area of Delta State, where Mrs. Ugbowan was arrested on June 5, 2026.
During questioning, she allegedly admitted to masterminding the fake kidnapping and subsequently led investigators to the residence of another suspect, Ochukwudem Uwadia, 38, in Delta State.
According to the police, Uwadia’s residence served as the location where the fake kidnapping videos were produced.
The clips reportedly showed Mrs. Ugbowan with her hands and feet tied while emotional appeals for ransom were directed at her family.
Investigators also discovered that Uwadia’s 18-year-old son, Chibuzor Ochukwudem, allegedly participated in the scheme and was seen pointing a firearm at Mrs. Ugbowan’s head in the videos to make the kidnapping appear genuine.
Police said all four suspects connected to the alleged conspiracy have now been arrested.
A search conducted at the premises used for the production of the videos led to the recovery of an automatic pump-action gun allegedly used during the recording of the ransom footage.
The Edo State Police Command said the suspects will face prosecution upon the conclusion of investigations, warning members of the public against engaging in criminal schemes disguised as kidnapping incidents.
The European Union has imposed a €200 million fine on Chinese-owned online retail platform Temu over the sale of illegal and unsafe products across its marketplace.
EU regulators announced the penalty on Thursday, accusing the e-commerce giant of failing to properly prevent dangerous items from reaching consumers within the bloc.
According to the European Commission, European shoppers were highly likely to encounter illegal products on Temu, including unsafe baby toys, defective chargers, and jewellery that failed safety standards.
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The EU said Temu failed to adequately assess the risks linked to illegal products being sold on its platform, adding that the company underestimated the level of harm such items could pose to consumers.
EU tech commissioner Henna Virkkunen said Temu’s rapid expansion in Europe made the issue more concerning, noting that millions of users could potentially be exposed to unsafe products.
Temu, however, disagreed with the decision and described the fine as “disproportionate.” The company stated that it had cooperated with regulators and already introduced additional measures to improve platform governance and user safety.
The sanction was issued under the European Union’s Digital Services Act, a major law aimed at holding large digital platforms accountable for illegal content and consumer risks online.
The platform, which entered the European market in 2023, has grown rapidly and now boasts about 130 million users within the EU.
Regulators also disclosed that investigations into other suspected breaches by Temu are still ongoing, including concerns over addictive app features and its recommendation systems.
Temu has been given until August 28 to submit a compliance plan outlining how it intends to address the violations or risk facing further penalties.
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has arrested former Minister of Power, Saleh Mamman, over his alleged involvement in a N33.8 billion fraud linked to power sector projects in Nigeria.
The arrest comes months after Mamman was convicted in absentia on multiple counts bordering on the alleged diversion of public funds meant for critical electricity infrastructure, including the Mambilla Power Project and other national power initiatives.
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EFCC Chairman, Ola Olukoyede, confirmed that the former minister was apprehended at about 3:30 a.m. on Tuesday in the Rigasa area of Kaduna State following weeks of intelligence-led surveillance operations.
According to him, Mamman had evaded arrest since his conviction and sentencing, prompting a sustained nationwide search by EFCC operatives.
He said the arrest represents a major breakthrough in the commission’s efforts to ensure that all individuals found guilty of financial crimes are brought to justice, regardless of their status or influence.
Two suspects arrested for allegedly harbouring ex-minister
The EFCC also disclosed that two other individuals were arrested during the operation for allegedly assisting and providing shelter to the former minister while he was on the run.
Investigators are currently questioning the suspects to determine the extent of their involvement in aiding a convicted fugitive.
Properties and assets under investigation
The anti-graft agency further revealed that it has identified additional properties suspected to be linked to Mamman, adding that asset recovery processes are already underway.
EFCC boss Olukoyede noted that the case has exposed weaknesses in monitoring high-profile corruption trials, adding that reforms would be introduced to prevent similar lapses in future cases.
Prosecutor confirms enforcement of court order
The Director of Public Prosecution, Rotimi Oyedepo (SAN), said the arrest marks the enforcement of a court judgment, stating that Mamman’s conviction and sentence are now being fully implemented following his capture.
He added that the next step would be the ex-minister’s transfer to a correctional facility in line with legal procedures.
Bizteller recalls that Saleh Mamman was convicted over allegations of diverting funds allocated for major power projects, including the Mambilla hydroelectric scheme, one of Nigeria’s largest and most strategic energy investments.
The EFCC says the arrest underscores its commitment to tackling corruption and recovering stolen public funds across the country.
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