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How EFCC Officials Allegedly Tortured Lagos Clubgoers, Forced Out Naked Couple

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Customers and workers at the Lakers Lounge Hotel and Bar, Ikorodu, Lagos State, have accused officials of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission of subjecting them to torture during a raid on the facility.

PUNCH Metro gathered that the workers were attending to customers at the club when the armed officials invaded the premises around 11.30pm on Friday, June 3.

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The officials, who were said to have presented no warrant, also allegedly removed the closed-circuit television in the course of the operation.

They allegedly ordered customers and workers to lie on the floor and beat up those who protested against the raid.

A customer, Oladapo Ogunyinka, said the EFCC officials seized peoples’ phones, adding that he had yet to recover his seized property.

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He said, “I left Ikeja with two guests to have fun at the club. We were upstairs when the EFCC operatives invaded the premises with guns and sticks. One of them, Olumide, approached our direction with a gun, seized my iPhone PRO Max 13 and Samsung Galaxy A22 valued at N900,000 and ordered us to go down.

“When we got down, the operatives told us to lie down flat. Immediately, the official that seized my phones started doing a video record. The officials went to the hotel attached to the club, broke the doors and brought lodgers outside. There was a particular couple that came out; the man was wearing only boxers, and the lady, a pair of pants and a bra.

READ ALSO: Alleged N2bn Fraud: Bayelsa-based Christ Embassy Pastor, Wife Head For Court As EFCC Declares Them Wanted

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“There was a lady that started convulsing due to the shock of the incident and one of the officers still beat her with a stick and said she was pretending. They treated people like animals; if I am lying, they have the CCTV footage with them, they should play it.

“They tied us in pairs of two; I explained to one of the operatives that I was a realtor that just came to the club to have fun and he informed the officer that led the operation from Ibadan, Chris Odofin, and I was untied. But they did not release my phones.”

Ogunyinka said the operatives instructed him to visit the EFCC office at Ibadan, Oyo State, to ask for one Momoh to claim his phones, adding that despite visiting the office, he had yet to retrieve his property.

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“I had nothing incriminating on my phones, so I visited their office, asked for Momoh, who took me to where the seized phones were kept, but I didn’t see my phones. I became angry and started shouting and luckily, I was able to identify the person that seized my phones and Momoh also saw the officer.

“So, their boss had to intervene and told Momoh to call the officer. Their boss, who is a woman, gave them 72 hours to produce my phones, but till date, they have yet to produce them. It is surprising that I gave my phones to an EFCC official and he stole my phones instead of tendering them as exhibits.

“The incident was a nightmare. They harassed customers and workers at the club and didn’t even interview most people. I explained everything to their boss in Ibadan and she was just apologising,” he added.

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The Human Resources Manager at the club, Ajoke Quadri, said the EFCC officials presented no warrant, adding that business activities at the club had been paralysed after the raid.

READ ALSO: EFCC Arraigns Company Executive Over €349,000 Fraud

She said, “The EFCC officials destroyed the club’s property; they burst my office and the safe where I keep staff documents. They also destroyed the camera room, took all the DVR and hard drive and cut the wires connecting the CCTV.

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“We also have a hotel attached to the club. They took the master card from our receptionist, went to the hotel’s rooms and the rooms where the master card wasn’t letting them to gain entry, they broke down the doors, raised the beds up and brought out lodgers.

“About 105 people work with us; but those operatives harassed my staff, including Gloria Nwankwo, and one of my supervisors, among others on duty. We had to rush the supervisor to a hospital as he could not hear properly after the attack.

“They also burst my boss’ office, took away three tablets used to punch in sales; they took two phones we used for receiving company transfer alerts. All staff and customers’ phones were taken; most of my staff had to go to Ibadan to retrieve their phones.

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“I had to also go to Ibadan to retrieve some of our property. It was when I got to Ibadan that I was able to assist some of the people, including a nurse that was arrested at De Butler’s club, but had no money to return to Lagos.”

Recall that officials the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency recently raided the club and allegedly brutalised customers and damaged some property.

CCTV installed on the club premises revealed as the NDLEA operatives ordered customers to raise their hands while they searched their pockets, bags and purses one after the other.

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As seen in the video clip, customers, who resisted the search, were beaten and forcefully dragged from the club during the raid.

In 2019, men of the Anti-Cultism Unit of the Lagos State Police Command also invaded the club and seized from its customers and workers valuables and cash running into several millions of naira.

The management of the club had sought redress over the incident as the Lagos State Police Command arrested 13 of the 19 police operatives for professional misconduct.

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Counsel for the club, Femi Martins, lamented the constant raids on the club by security agents, noting that some rivals were trying to perpetrate unfair actions to run the club out of business.

A rights lawyer, Inibehe Effiong, said a lot of victims had been wrongly arrested and stigmatised in the guise of searching for Internet fraudsters, adding that those whose rights were violated should seek redress in court.

He said, “EFCC in recent times has become arbitrary in the way its operatives go about the discharge of their functions. There have been several allegations about the highhandedness of the commission in handling cases regarding cybercrime.

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“In their attempt to go after the so-called Yahoo boys, they continuously violate the rights of innocent people. It is expected that before such an operation takes place, a proper search warrant would have been obtained to enable the commission to have legal access to the private property of citizens whether it is built for business or residential purposes.

“And a search warrant has to be targeted at a specific property and individual. Before a search warrant is issued under the administration of criminal justice act, there has to be reasonable suspicion.

“In a situation where they just invade premises and pick people indiscriminately, and begin to scout for evidence implicating the people that they have arrested, it is not a lawful way of enforcing the law.”

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READ ALSO: N80bn Fraud: EFCC Uncovers 17 Properties Linked To Accountant-General

The spokesperson for the EFCC, Wilson Uwujaren, had in a statement said the commission arrested 140 suspects in separate sting operations at popular hotels, including Lakers Lounge Hotel and Bar and De Butlers, following credible intelligence on their involvement in internet-related fraud.

“Items recovered from the suspects include exotic cars, electronic devices, laptop computers and mobile phones. The suspects will be charged to court as soon as the investigations are concluded,” the statement said.

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Contacted for a follow-up reaction, Uwujaren said, “There is nothing to add to the statement that we issued.”

PUNCH.

 

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Metro

NAF Airstrikes Kill Scores Of Terrorists, Destroy Hideout In Borno

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The Nigerian Air Force said air interdictions by the Air Component of Operation Hadin Kai have killed scores of terrorists and destroyed their enclave in Borno.

This was contained in a statement released by the Director, Public Relations and Information, NAF, Air Commodore Ehimen Ejodame, on Thursday in Abuja.

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Ejodame said the strikes were conducted on Wednesday at about 10:50 a.m. in Bula Madibale, Gezuwa general area of the state.

READ ALSO:NAF Air Raids Kill Three Boko Haram Commanders In Borno

He said intelligence and surveillance had confirmed unusual movements at the location, where about 45 terrorists were observed converging, some arriving on motorcycles and bicycles from different directions.

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According to him, reconnaissance also revealed two terrorist flags hoisted at the site, underscoring its use as a stronghold and rallying point for insurgents.

Acting on this credible intelligence, the Air Component launched precision strikes, eliminating several terrorists, while the flagged structure and other hostile assets were destroyed,” he said.

READ ALSO:NAF Kills 35 Terrorists In Border Airstrikes Near Cameroon

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Ejodame also said that the strikes denied the terrorists freedom to regroup, reinforce or mount further attacks on communities in the North East.

He assured that the Armed Forces remained committed to restoring peace and stability across the region.

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Metro

Police Arrest Islamic Cleric With Human Flesh In Oyo

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The Police Command in Oyo State has arrested an Islamic cleric, simply identified as Alfa Bashiru, in possession of suspected human flesh.

The Command’s Public Relations Officer, CSP Adewale Osifeso, confirmed this on Thursday in a post on the verified X handle of the Command.

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He said that the Federal Highway Patrol team intercepted a white bus with registration number XA 551 IRG, which the suspect allegedly boarded, at the Toll Gate axis of the Ibadan Expressway at 11:30 a.m., on Wednesday.

Oyefeso said that the suspect, when quizzed, claimed to have bought the suspected human flesh in Lagos.

READ ALSO:Oyo Declares Work-free Day For Isese Day

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The suspect, he said, had been transferred to the Homicide Section of the State Criminal Investigation Department (SCID), Iyaganku, for further investigation.

The suspected item is undergoing forensic analysis to determine its authenticity and source,” Osifeso said.

In a separate development, operatives of the command during a Search and Stop Operation recovered an abandoned Toyota Camry car with Registration number LSD 957 JX.

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Osifeso said that police operatives flagged down the Toyota Camry car during a routine search, and the driver of the car jumped down and took to his heels, abandoning the vehicle.

READ ALSO:BREAKING: Tonye Cole Emerges APC Consensus Governorship Candidate In Rivers

“The car has been taken into custody by the Command while members of the public with legitimate claims to the vehicle are urged to come forward with verifiable documents or contact the Police Command,” he said.

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The police spokesman said that Stop and Search operations were not exaggerated security theatrics, but real and deliberate measures to maintain law and order and as well as ensuring the safety of residents and travellers within Oyo State.

Osifeso said that the command under the leadership of the Commissioner of Police, Femi Haruna, appreciated the public for their continued cooperation and understanding.

He assured them of sustained police efforts to combat crime and foster a more secure environment.

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Metro

Fake Madman Arrested For Cultivating Cannabis Farm In Anambra

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The Anambra State Police Command has arrested a 43-year-old man, Patrick Ojele, for allegedly disguising himself as a mentally unstable person while secretly cultivating a cannabis farm in Awka, the state capital.

The Spokesman for the Anambra State Police Command, Tochukwu Ikenga, stated in a press release on Thursday that operatives attached to the operations department arrested the suspect during a patrol along the Awka–Enugu Expressway, near Ngozika Estate, on Wednesday.

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The statement read in part, “The Anambra State Police Command has arrested a 43-year-old man, Patrick Ojele, who pretended to be mentally unstable while secretly cultivating a marijuana farm in Awka, the state capital.

READ ALSO:Four Feared Killed As Gunmen Attack Burial Ceremony In Anambra

The police operatives attached to the Operations Department, Awka, nabbed the suspect on September 17, 2025, during a routine patrol along the Awka–Enugu Expressway near Ngozika Estate.

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“He later led the team to the hidden farm, where large quantities of weeds suspected to be cannabis sativa were recovered.

“The Commissioner of Police, CP Ikioye Orutugu, noted that the arrest reflects the Command’s renewed strategy of cutting off criminal supplies by targeting drug dealers who embolden cultists and violent offenders.”

According to him, the CP further directed that the suspect should be handed over to the Special Anti-Cultism Squad, Enugwu-Ukwu, for discreet investigation to trace his buyers and dismantle the wider distribution network.

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READ ALSO:Suspect Arrested for Running Illegal Drink Factory In Anambra

The PUNCH had reported that the police command has arrested no fewer than 54 suspects, comprising 39 males and 15 females, for various offences ranging from kidnapping, cultism, hard drugs and banned substances.

Ikenga said the arrests were followed by coordinated raids by police operatives in Ogidi, Idemili North Local Government Area, and Ifitedunu, Dunukofia LGA, in separate raid operations.

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According to him, the coordinated operations were in line with renewed strategies aimed at restoring sanity in the state and curbing the growing menace of crime among young people between 18 and 26 years.

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