Operatives of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Police Command have arrested six suspected members of a kidnapping and “one chance” armed robbery syndicate and recovered N8.25 million allegedly paid as ransom for the release of a female victim abducted in Abuja.
The Commissioner of Police, FCT Command, CP Ahmed Muhammed Sanusi, disclosed this during a press briefing on Tuesday, July 7, 2026 as part of the ongoing efforts to keep residents of the Federal Capital Territory abreast of the command’s anti-crime operations.
According to CP Sanusi, the operation was carried out by detectives attached to the Command’s Violent Crime Response Unit (VCRU) following a distress report received on June 29, 2026 that a young woman had been abducted in the Maitama area of the FCT. People& Society
Sanusi said the kidnappers initially demanded N20 million but later accepted N8.25 million before releasing the victim on July 3.
Investigations and digital tracking reportedly traced the victim’s captivity to Kwan-Kwashe Village in neighbouring Niger State.
Operatives sustained surveillance after the victim regained freedom, leading to the arrest of six suspects on July 5 in Suleja, Niger State.
The suspects were identified as Ifeoma Nnamchi, 35, believed to be the gang leader; Peter Rasheed Onwunumah, 40; Olanipekun Anuoluwa, 46; Jemimah Monday, 25; Gabriel Nnamchi, 14; and Stanley Nnamchi, 17.
Items recovered during the operation included the N8.25 million ransom, two vehicles—a Toyota Corolla and a Toyota Camry—a cutlass, seven pairs of AirPods, assorted jewellery suspected to have been stolen from previous victims, five mobile phones and a laptop.
Preliminary investigations revealed that the suspected gang leader, Ifeoma Nnamchi, and Olanipekun Anuoluwa had previously been arrested by the FCT Police Command in 2022 and 2019, respectively, over similar offences.
“For those who were present at or listened to, my maiden press briefing upon assuming duty as the Commissioner of Police of the FCT Police Command, you will recall that I stated that I have a verifiable track record and that, wherever I serve, crime does not thrive,” the CP stated.
“In keeping with that commitment, I deployed a section of the Command’s Violent Crime Response Unit’s Tracking team on the 29th of June, 2026, following a distress call reporting the suspected kidnapping of a young lady in Maitama area of the FCT.
“The suspected kidnappers subsequently contacted the victim’s family and demanded a ransom of Twenty Million Naira (N20,000,000) for her release.
“Unknown to the suspects, we were already hot on their trail. Our digital tracking revealed that they had taken the victim out of the FCT and kept her in Kwan-kwashe Village, a remote settlement in Niger State.
“The suspects eventually collected a ransom of Eight Million, two Hundred and fifty Thousand Naira (N8,250,000) from the victim’s family before releasing her on the 3rd of July, 2026.
“This development did not deter us. We remained on the trail of the suspects until the 5th of July, 2026, when our operatives arrested six (6) members of the gang in Suleja area of Niger State, two of which are children of the gang leader.
The suspects are: 1. Ifeoma Nnamchi, 35 years old – Who is the gang leader 2. Peter Rasheed Onwunumah, 40 years old. 3. Olanipekun Anuoluwa, 46 years old. 4. Jemimah Monday, 25 years old. 5. Gabriel Nnamchi, 14 yrs. 6. Stanley Nnamchi, 17 yrs. All are residents of Niger State.
“Upon their arrest, the following exhibits were recovered from them: the sum of Eight Million, Two Hundred and fifty Thousand Naira (N8,250,000), being the ransom collected from the victim’s family, two fully tinted operational vehicles:- a Toyota Corolla with registration number SMK 559 FV and a Toyota Camry with Reg: No: YAB 712 NH, one (1) sharp cutlass, seven ear pods, several jewelries suspected to belong to their previous victims, five (5) phones and one (1) laptop.
“Further investigations revealed that the gang leader, Ifeoma Nnamchi, and the third accomplice, Olanipekun Anuoluwa are both repeat offenders who were previously arrested by the FCT Police Command in 2022 and 2019 respectively for the same offence.
“Despite her previous arrest, both suspects returned to constitute this syndicate, which has been operating along Kubwa Expressway, Maitama Federal Housing Road, and other locations within the FCT since 2024.
“The syndicate revealed that they have carried out several other “one chance” operations which they cannot accurately recall.
“But in their most recent operations, they have successfully kidnapped and robbed five (5) separate female victims and extorted ransoms amounting to Twelve Million, Eight Hundred Thousand Naira (N12,800,000).
“The suspects and the recovered exhibits remain in police custody and will be charged to court upon the conclusion of investigations.”
The Nigerian Correctional Service has said that two inmates escaped from the Medium Security Custodial Centre in Okene, Kogi State, on Sunday, November 8, 2026.
In a statement on Tuesday, the Service’s Public Relations Officer, Chief Superintendent of Corrections Jane Osuji, said the NCoS had begun working with other security agencies to recapture the fugitives.
She said, “The NCoS confirms that two inmates escaped from the Medium Security Custodial Centre, Okene, Kogi State, on Sunday, 8th November, 2026.
“The service has commenced necessary actions in collaboration with relevant security agencies to ensure the prompt recapture of the fleeing inmates.”
Osuji said a full report on the incident was being awaited to establish how the inmates escaped.
“A comprehensive report on the incident is being awaited to establish the circumstances surrounding the escape,” she said.
Osuji said the Controller-General of Corrections had ordered a thorough investigation into the incident.
According to her, the directive was aimed at identifying any lapses and taking appropriate action where necessary.
“The Controller-General of Corrections has also directed that the incident be thoroughly investigated, with a view to identifying any lapses and taking appropriate action where necessary,” she said.
Osuji assured the public that the matter was receiving attention and that all appropriate measures were being taken to rearrest the inmates.
“The service assures members of the public that the situation is being given the necessary attention and that all appropriate measures are being taken to rearrest the fleeing inmates,” Osuji said.
She added that the service would provide updates once verified information became available and thanked the public for its understanding and cooperation.
The Okene escape follows that of an awaiting-trial inmate from the Auchi centre in Edo State in October 2026. The Edo State Command of the NCoS confirmed that the inmate, identified as Thomas, escaped from the Medium Security Custodial Centre, Auchi, where he was being held over conspiracy and stealing.
The Delta State Police Command has arrested a 54-year-old woman for allegedly faking her kidnapping to extort N15m from her younger brother.
The woman reportedly claimed that she had been abducted and taken to the bush by some men, who demanded N15m ransom for her release.
The police public relations officer of the command disclosed this in a video showing the woman confessing to the alleged crime.
The police spokesperson said the case was reported at the Ogwashi-Uku Divisional Police Headquarters on October 23, 2026, prompting the Commissioner of Police to direct the Anti-Kidnapping Unit in Obu-Luku, Aniocha South Local Government Area, to investigate.
He said the operatives launched an intelligence-led investigation which exposed the alleged plot and led to the woman’s arrest.
The spokesperson said, “On October 23, 2026, a case of suspected kidnapping was reported at Oguachukwu Division, and the Commissioner of Police, in his wisdom, directed the Anti-Kidnapping Unit of Obu-Luku to investigate.
“They started the investigation, and the result was alarming. In the past, we have heard of cases of self-kidnapping and fake kidnappings involving underage persons or teenagers aged 15, 16, 17 or 18 to 20.
“But we have never had a case involving a 54-year-old woman. It is quite unfortunate that she faked her own kidnapping because she wanted to extort N15m from her younger brother.
“We embarked on an intelligence-led investigation, which led to the eventual discovery that the kidnapping was fake. She was arrested before she started opening up.”
In a confessional statement contained in the video, the suspect admitted to staging her abduction and demanding the money from her brother.
She said, “I kidnapped myself. I told my brother I had been kidnapped when I went out to buy medicine, and it took me to the bush. I called my brother and told him.
“I told him they wanted N15m and that if he didn’t pay the money, they would kill me. It was the devil’s work. I want forgiveness. It was the devil’s work.”
The police spokesperson said the woman claimed to have been held for 12 days before her arrest.
He added that the investigation had revealed that she did not act alone, as some people were allegedly involved in the plot.
He said, “She claimed that she was kidnapped on October 23 and remained in captivity for 12 days, all in a bid to extort N15m from her brother.
“But thanks to the intelligence of the Anti-Kidnapping Unit here in Obu-Luku, she was eventually arrested, and the cat was let out of the bag.
“Some of the people she conspired with are being tracked, and we are definitely going to arrest them.”
A United Kingdom court has convicted a 66-year-old Sunderland councillor, Glenn Gibbins, over “grossly offensive” comments he made about the city’s Nigerian community.
According to a report published by UK news outlet Chronicle Live on Monday, the former Reform UK councillor, who was elected in May, was found guilty after a three-hour trial at South Tyneside Magistrates’ Court.
District Judge Zoe Passfield, the report said, sentenced him to a 12-month community order with 150 hours of unpaid work.
Gibbins was said to have admitted that his comments were offensive but denied that they were grossly so. He made the remarks in a Facebook post in March 2024.
The report said the suspended councillor told the court that his comment, which suggested that Nigerians should be melted down and used to fill potholes, was “naughty” but was not meant to be taken literally.
The post reportedly came to light after the group Hope Not Hate reviewed his social media posts when Gibbins was announced as a Reform UK candidate for Sunderland City Council.
Chronicle Live reported that the authorities were alerted to the post after he was elected.
In the post, Gibbins wrote, “Can’t believe the amount of Nigerians in town… should melt them all down and fill in the potholes!!”
The report quoted the prosecuting counsel, Emma Dowling, as saying, “The comment about melting them down conjures up despicable images.”
She said the remark implied that Nigerians were “somewhat less than human, stripping people in that group of humanity”.
Giving evidence in court, a Nigerian community leader in Sunderland, Godwin Ejeh, said he led a protest outside the City Hall building on the day Gibbins was expected to be sworn in, hoping that the councillor would apologise.
However, Gibbins had already been suspended by Reform UK after the post emerged and did not attend the ceremony.
Ejeh, who stood as a Liberal Democrat councillor in the May elections, denied trying to make political capital out of the situation, telling the court, “We are talking about humanity here; it’s way beyond politics.”
In his defence, Gibbins said, “I thought it was a tongue-in-cheek joke. It was an unreal scenario. No one took it literally.”
He explained that he had set up his business in the Bridges shopping centre and recalled that, on the day he made the post, some Nigerians had approached him about buying some of his printing equipment.
Gibbins said he had exchanged banter with the Nigerians at his stall and that the conversation had been good-natured.
The report said he told the court that, later that night, after “a couple of cans of beer”, he saw a Facebook post about Nigerians which he tried unsuccessfully to share. He then typed out the message himself and published it on his public Facebook profile.
When Dowling asked what reaction he intended to provoke, he said, “It was tongue-in-cheek, a bit naughty, but I thought it was fun.”
Speaking about his earlier interaction with the Nigerians at his stall, he said, “They had done my head in, in a funny way, not a bad way.”
Asked what was funny about the post, Gibbins replied, “It’s an unreal scenario; you cannot melt people down. Anyone who takes that literally… you cannot do that. I wouldn’t dream of joking about killing people.”
He told the court that he was not particularly political and that, when Reform UK approached him about becoming a councillor in March, he considered the position a source of income “to tide me over” during the quieter summer period for his business.
He also said he enjoyed helping residents during the brief period before his suspension.
Summarising the prosecution’s case, Dowling said the post was grossly offensive and dehumanising. She said it was shared “for no reason whatsoever other than to offend and humiliate people from Nigeria who live in Sunderland”.
Defence counsel Adam King described the post as “unfunny” and “an unpleasant joke/non-joke”.
He cited professional comedians such as Jo Brand, who had joked about throwing acid on Nigel Farage, and Jimmy Carr, who had made jokes about gipsies and the Holocaust, arguing that they had not been prosecuted.
The court found that the nature of Gibbins’ remarks had crossed the threshold of being “grossly offensive” to reasonable members of the public.
Christopher Atkinson of the Crown Prosecution Service in the North East said, “Racially charged and grossly offensive comments like this cross the line between free speech and criminal behaviour. They can be particularly upsetting and dehumanising for those in affected communities.
“I would remind anyone using social media that grossly offensive commentary of the type used by Glenn Gibbins is a criminal offence, and those posting similar material could face prosecution as a result of their actions.”
