By Ayorinde Oluokun
Police operatives have arrested eight foreign nationals who are alleged members of a transnational criminal syndicate involved in a coordinated fake kidnapping scheme to extort money from their families and relations abroad in Adiyan Town, Agbado Area of Ogun State.
The suspects were arrested following credible intelligence and sustained surveillance into a reported kidnapping incident that was later uncovered to be a staged abduction, Ogun Police Command spokesperson, Oluseyi Babaseyi said in a statement.
Babaseyi, in a statement issued in Abeokuta on Monday identified the suspects as Zakaria Zawadogo ‘M’ aged 34yrs, Burkina Faso; Cheik El-Mehdi ‘M’ aged 23yrs, Mauritania; Suren Neta ‘F’ aged 25yrs, Ivory Coast; Koffi Breno ‘M’ aged 36yrs, Ivory Coast; Gondo Treso ‘M’ aged 32yrs, Ivory Coast; Kunuji Ezekiel ‘M’ aged 27yrs, Republic of Benin; Kougasi John ‘M’, Ivory Coast; and Hemue Blinsi ‘M’ aged 30yrs, Côte d’Ivoire.
He said the suspects were arrested by police detectives following a report received on June 6, 2026, from a concerned informant.
Babaseyi said the informant had alerted the Police that a 23-year-old Mauritanian national, Cheik El-Mehdi, had contacted his family abroad in May 2026 claiming he had been kidnapped in Nigeria and demanding ransom for his release.
Shortly after, another suspect, Zakaria Zawadogo, reinforced the demand with threats that the victim would be killed if the ransom was not paid.
He said upon receipt of the complaint, detectives of Ifo Division immediately activated intelligence-driven investigation revealed that the suspects were operating from a hideout in Adiyan Town, Agbado Area of Ogun State.
“Acting on this intelligence, operatives were swiftly mobilized to the location where Zakaria Zawadogo was arrested. He subsequently led detectives to the syndicate’s hideout, resulting in the arrest of Cheik El-Mehdi, Suren Neta, and five other foreign nationals.
“All suspects were taken into custody, while the premises were secured and thoroughly searched in line with due process,” the Police spokesperson said.
Babaseyi said preliminary findings revealed that the operation by the foreigners involved a coordinated criminal enterprise involving the deliberate staging of a kidnapping scenario to defraud the victim’s family.
“It was further established that Suren Neta lured Cheik El-Mehdi into Nigeria, while Zakaria Zawadogo coordinated the ransom demands and issued threats to compel payment. The purported victim was also found to have actively participated in the orchestration of the fake abduction.
“The principal suspects, Zakaria Zawadogo, Cheik El-Mehdi, and Suren Neta, have all confessed to their involvement in the conspiracy, while further investigation is ongoing to determine the full extent of the syndicate’s operations and possible links to other transnational criminal networks,” Babaseyi said.
He added that the case has since been transferred to the State Criminal Investigation Department (SCID) for discreet and further investigation.
