The Ogun State Police Command has dismissed as false and misleading reports circulating on social media alleging bandit attacks on schools and communities in Ota, Ifo and other parts of the state, assuring residents that the state remains peaceful and secure. The clarification was issued on Tuesday by the Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Oluseyi Babaseyi, following widespread panic triggered by viral social media messages.
According to the statement, the alarm spread rapidly through WhatsApp groups and other social media platforms, claiming that armed bandits had attacked areas around schools in Sango-Ota and its environs. The false reports prompted parents and guardians to abandon their businesses and rush to schools to pick up their children, causing gridlock along major roads including Idiroko road, Sango Roundabout and Oju-Ore.
Reacting to the reports, Babaseyi said security operatives were immediately deployed to the affected locations to verify the claims and reassure residents through intensified patrols and security assessments. He stated that the Ogun State Police Command wishes to categorically assure the general public that the entire state remains safe, calm and secure, and that there has been no bandit attack, kidnapping incident, terrorist activity or any form of security breach anywhere in Ogun State, including the areas mentioned in the reports currently circulating on social media.
Investigations and coordinated security assessments conducted across the affected communities confirmed that normal academic, commercial and social activities were ongoing without any threat to lives or property. The command stated unequivocally that there has been no bandit attack, kidnapping incident, terrorist activity, or any form of security breach anywhere in the state, including Oluke Community High School, Sango Ota High School in the Ijoko axis, Fadunsin Area of Ijoko, Atan-Ota, Sango-Ota, Agbado, Ifo, and other adjoining communities.
The command also clarified that the recent arrest of 38 foreign nationals in Atan-Ota was not connected to banditry, kidnapping, terrorism or any other violent criminal activity, contrary to claims being spread online. The operation carried out in Kajola-Ilese, Atan-Ota, which had been linked by some social media users to banditry, involved the arrest of 38 foreign nationals from Côte d’Ivoire.
According to Babaseyi, the suspects comprised 19 males and 19 females aged between 25 and 35 years who were reportedly found in an apartment during an intelligence-led operation. He noted that the individuals could not produce valid immigration or travel documents during preliminary screening. The suspects claimed to have entered Nigeria for online business activities. Upon conclusion of preliminary police procedures, they were duly handed over to the Nigeria Immigration Service for further investigation and appropriate administrative action in line with extant immigration laws and protocols.
“At no time during the operation were bandits, kidnappers or terrorists arrested. Any attempt to link the arrested foreign nationals to banditry or any violent criminal activity is entirely false, misleading and capable of creating unnecessary panic and disturbing public peace,” Babaseyi said. The police spokesperson added that the Command’s School Protection Squad, in collaboration with the Divisional Police Officers of the affected areas, conducted immediate security assessments of all referenced schools, and the exercise confirmed that all schools were safe, secure, and fully operational.
School activities reportedly continued peacefully and without interruption throughout the day, with students and staff completing a successful academic day before normal closing time. The latest clarification comes barely one week after the Ogun State Police Command arrested a tailor, Qawiyu Oloyede, for allegedly producing and circulating a fake video on social media claiming that bandits had invaded Atan-Ota. During interrogation, the suspect reportedly admitted that the video was staged to attract followers on TikTok and other social media platforms. The police subsequently warned members of the public against spreading unverified security information capable of causing fear, panic and public disorder.
