The Lagos State Police Command has confirmed that TikTok influencer, Habeeb Hamzat, popularly known as Peller, is safe despite reports of his alleged abduction during a livestream on Wednesday night.

The command’s spokesperson, Benjamin Hundeyin, in an interview on Channels Television’s The Morning Brief on Thursday, said that preliminary checks showed that the content creator was at home and unharmed.

“We are investigating the allegation, but we can confirm that the person in question, Habeeb, popularly known as Peller, is at home safe and sound.

“His vehicle is also intact, all his phones and properties, nothing was missing,” Hundeyin said.

He explained that the police were still reviewing the incident to ascertain whether it was a kidnap, a staged abduction, or a false alarm.

“That is what we are investigating. All his properties were intact, and there was no violence whatsoever,” the police spokesman added.

The 20-year-old was said to have been whisked away by armed men on his way home while livestreaming on TikTok.

In footage shared widely online, he appeared to mistake the men for security operatives before being taken away.

The social media sensation, who shot to fame in 2021 with his short-form videos and live-streaming on TikTok, has since expanded his brand to livestreaming of shows and events on Twitch.

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The Osun State Government has said it will obtain the Certified True Copy of the judgment of a United States court that sentenced the Apetumodu of Ipetumodu, Oba Joseph Oloyede, to prison over a multimillion-dollar COVID-19 relief fund fraud.

It was earlier reported that Oloyede, 62, a dual citizen of Nigeria and the United States, was on Tuesday sentenced to 56 months in prison by U.S. District Judge Christopher A. Boyko.

He was also ordered to serve three years of supervised release and pay $4,408,543.38 in restitution.

According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Ohio, the monarch forfeited his Medina, Ohio, home, purchased with proceeds of the scheme, and an additional $96,006.89 traced to fraud.

He was convicted for leading a conspiracy to exploit COVID-19 emergency loan programmes designed to assist struggling small businesses.

Speaking exclusively to our correspondent on Wednesday, the Osun State Commissioner for Local Government and Chieftaincy Matters, Mr. Dosu Babatunde, said the government would not act based on social media reports.

“While it may be true that the monarch has been convicted and jailed, there is no official record with us.

We cannot rely on Facebook posts and stories to justify such a serious matter,” he said.

He added that the government would obtain the CTC of the judgment before making any decision regarding the stool.

“We will direct that the Certified True Copy of the judgment be obtained. After studying it, the government will then decide on the next steps,” Babatunde stated.

Meanwhile, calm reigned in Ipetumodu on Wednesday, though residents were observed discussing the issue in hushed tones.

A source said that chiefs in the town held a meeting at the palace, where deliberations centred on the monarch’s fate.

The most senior chief in the community, Sunday Adedeji, when contacted, said, “May God never allow chaos in our community. By the grace of God, He will be in total and complete control. There is no crisis in the town, and we do not envisage any.”

Court documents revealed that between April 2020 and February 2022, Oloyede, who operated as a tax preparer and owned five businesses and a nonprofit, conspired with 62-year-old Edward Oluwasanmi of Willoughby, Ohio, to submit fraudulent applications for COVID-19 relief loans.

The fraudulent applications targeted the Paycheck Protection Programme and the Economic Injury Disaster Loan scheme under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act.

Using their entities, both men submitted falsified applications, defrauding the U.S. government of more than $4.2m.

Oloyede had pleaded guilty to six counts bordering on conspiracy to commit wire fraud, engaging in monetary transactions with criminally derived property, and making false tax returns.

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On December 10, 1986, in Stockholm, Sweden, Nigerian writer and playwright Wole Soyinka made history as he became the first African to receive the Nobel Prize in Literature.

A famous image from that evening captures Soyinka making a toast with Princess Christina of Sweden during the banquet that followed the Nobel ceremony. The moment symbolized not only personal triumph but also a cultural milestone for Nigeria and Africa at large.

A Historic Achievement

The Nobel Committee honored Soyinka for his work that, in their words, “fashions the drama of existence with the power of poetry.” His writings combined Yoruba oral traditions, history, and Western dramatic techniques, producing works that explored tyranny, corruption, colonial legacies, and the human struggle for dignity.

Pride for Africa

For Nigeria and the wider African continent, Soyinka’s recognition represented far more than an individual award—it was a statement that African voices, rooted in indigenous cultures yet addressing global issues, had earned a central place in world literature.

Symbol of Resistance and Artistry

Soyinka was not only celebrated for his literary genius but also for his lifelong stance as a resistant voice against oppression. From his plays like A Dance of the Forests (1960) to his political activism—sometimes at great personal cost—his Nobel Prize reflected the merging of art and moral courage.

Legacy of the 1986 Nobel

This occasion elevated African literature on the global stage and inspired generations of writers across the continent. The photograph of Soyinka toasting with Princess Christina remains a powerful image of cultural recognition and resilience, reminding the world of the universality and impact of African storytelling.

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