Eight arrested as Ogun police expose transnational kidnap-ransom fraud syndicate

The Ogun State Police Command has uncovered a transnational criminal syndicate allegedly involved in staging fake kidnappings to extort ransom from relatives both home and abroad, leading to the arrest of eight foreign nationals in Agbado area of the state.
The suspects were arrested during an intelligence led operation by operatives attached to the Ifo Divisional Headquarters following a reported kidnapping case that later turned out to be a coordinated staged abduction scheme.
The arrested suspects 

Zakaria Zawadogo (34, Burkina Faso), Cheik El-Mehdi (23, Mauritania), Suren Neta (25, Ivory Coast), Koffi Breno (36, Ivory Coast), Gondo Treso (32, Ivory Coast), Kunuji Ezekiel (27, Republic of Benin), Kougasi John (Ivory Coast), and Hemue Blinsi (30, Côte d’Ivoire).
According to the Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Oluseyi Babaseyi, the operation was triggered after a complaint was received on June 6, 2026, from an informant who reported that one of the suspects had contacted his family abroad, claiming he had been kidnapped and demanding ransom.
He added that detectives immediately launched an intelligence investigation which led to the tracking and eventual arrest of the suspects at a hideout in Adiyan Town, Agbado.
The PPRO said 

“Upon receipt of the complaint, detectives of Ifo Division immediately activated an 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”.Preliminary investigations revealed that the syndicate allegedly operated a coordinated criminal enterprise, carefully staging fake abductions to defraud unsuspecting families abroad.
The Commissioner of Police, CP Bode Ojajuni, commended the operatives for the swift breakthrough, describing the operation as evidence of the growing sophistication of transnational criminal activities.
He assured that the Command would sustain intelligence led policing and intensify efforts against organised crime across the state.

Eight arrested as Ogun police expose transnational kidnap-ransom fraud syndicate