By Deborah Akpede
The Lagos State Police Command has strongly dismissed media reports claiming that hundreds of Boko Haram suspects were apprehended in the state, describing the story as entirely false and designed to incite fear.
Police spokesperson, CSP Benjamin Hundeyin, in a statement on Friday, said the Commissioner of Police, CP Olohundare Jimoh, had immediately ordered an investigation into the claim after it was published on April 17 in several newspapers.
“The outcome of the investigation reveals that there is nowhere throughout Lagos State that the group mentioned in the report – Boko Haram – were seen or sighted or arrested,” Hundeyin stated.
He added that leaders and drivers at the trailer parks mentioned in the report had also denied any such arrests or presence of suspected Boko Haram members.
“Furthermore, in the trailer park communities mentioned, the leaders, operators, and drivers in the indicated places in the report clarified to the police that there were no such elements of Boko Haram seen or arrested in those localities,” he said.
To verify the claims, Hundeyin said surveillance operatives, the Lagos State Police Intelligence Department (SID), and other units were deployed to the areas cited in the report.
“No one confirmed the presence or arrest of such group members as reported in the write-up throughout Lagos State,” he confirmed.
Describing the publication as “false, malicious, and ill-intended,” Hundeyin urged residents to disregard the report.
“The report in its entirety is false, malicious, and ill-intended to cause fear and apprehension in the minds of the public,” he said.
He added, “Residents should discountenance the write-up as untrue and a figment of the imagination of the writer, which was very unfortunate and despicable and should be outrightly ignored.”
CSP Hundeyin further appealed to the media to uphold truth and accuracy, urging journalists not to let their platforms be used to spread misinformation.
“The writer of the story is advised to verify facts and truth of any information before going to the press,” he cautioned.
He reassured Lagosians of their safety and the police’s ongoing commitment to securing lives and property across the state.
“Members of the public are encouraged by the Commissioner of Police to go about their duties and other means of livelihood without fear or apprehension,” he said.
Residents were advised to report any suspicious activities to the nearest police station or call the control room on 08063299264.
