Police detectives attached to Ifo Division of the Ogun State Police Command have arrested
eght foreign nationals linked to a transnational criminal syndicate behind fake kidnapping scheme, designed to extort ransom from unsuspecting Nigerian families abroad.
The suspects were arrested during an intelligence-led operation by CSP Olabisi Kamorudeen, Ifo Divisional Police Officer in Adiyan Town, Agbado Area of the State.
The Command’s spokesman, DSP Oluseyi Babaseyi said on Monday in a statement that the breakthroughs followed credible intelligence and sustained surveillance into a reported kidnapping incident that was later uncovered to be a staged abduction.
The suspects were identified 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.
The breakthrough followed a report received on June 6, 2026, from a concerned informant, who 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, according to police investigation.
The statement said, “Upon receipt of the complaint, detectives of Ifo Division immediately activated intelligence-driven investigation. This swift response proved decisive in uncovering the location of the suspects and preventing what could have resulted in a successful cross-border financial crime.
The technical intelligence report 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.
The statement further said, “All suspects were taken into custody, while the premises were secured and thoroughly searched in line with due process”.
“Preliminary findings revealed that the operation was a coordinated criminal enterprise involving the deliberate staging of a kidnapping scenario to defraud the victim’s family”.
Police investigation further revealed 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.
The statement also said further investigation is ongoing to determine the full extent of the syndicate’s operations and possible links to other transnational criminal networks.
The case, according to the statement, has since been transferred to the State Criminal Investigation Department (SCID) for discreet and further investigation.
The Commissioner of Police, Ogun State Command, CP Bode Ojajuni, commended the professionalism, discipline, and swift response of the detectives under CSP Olabisi Kamorudeen, whose intelligence-led action exposed and dismantled the criminal scheme.
Woww