Court Remands Four Foreign Nationals Over Alleged Kidnapping and Hostage Taking in Ogun State, Doctor Arrested for Supplying Kidnappers in Kwara

An Ogun State Chief Magistrate Court in Isabo, Abeokuta, has ordered the remand of four foreign nationals accused of kidnapping, hostage taking, and unlawful detention of multiple victims. The ruling underscores ongoing efforts by Nigerian security agencies to dismantle organized criminal networks operating across the region.

In a related development, the Department of State Services has arrested a medical doctor allegedly supplying medical drugs to suspected kidnapping gangs. According to a statement from the Chief Press Secretary to the Kwara State Governor, Rafiu Ajakaye, the doctor was intercepted at Jebba in Moro Local Council after intelligence linked him to a drug delivery network servicing armed criminal groups. Security officials noted that kidnappers have increasingly sought medical care for gunshot wounds sustained during confrontations with law enforcement, prompting closer monitoring of supply chains that enable these criminal operations.

The four suspects remanded in Ogun State are Augustine Nketia Boateng, aged forty one, Johnson Apan Julus, aged forty three, Dramane Lenganir, aged twenty six, and thirty seven year old Simms Raphael. The suspects are nationals of Ghana, Benin, and Burkina Faso. They were apprehended at their operational base in Harmony Estate, Pakudi Obada area of Ogun State, by officers of Interpol attached to the Force Criminal Investigation Department Annex in Ikoyi, Lagos. The operation was led by Commissioner of Police Bode Ojajuni.

The arrest followed a motion ex parte filed by Morufu Ajani Animashaun of the Force Legal and Prosecution Department. Animashaun requested the court to remand the suspects for sixty days pending legal advice from the Ogun State Director of Public Prosecutions. He also urged the court to direct that the suspects be held at the Ibara Correctional Centre in Abeokuta. The motion was supported by an eighteen paragraph affidavit deposed by Inspector Oyebisi Oni of Interpol, accompanied by a written address and documentary exhibits.

Chief Magistrate A. K. Araba granted the application and ordered the suspects to be remanded at the Oba Centre of the Nigerian Correctional Service. The matter was adjourned to February 27, 2026, for continuation of proceedings.

According to the affidavit, Interpol received a request on November 7, 2025, from Burkina Faso’s National Central Bureau in Ouagadougou regarding allegations of conspiracy, kidnapping, human trafficking, and obtaining money under false pretence. The complaint, filed by Mr. Lengane Toyazoula, sought assistance in rescuing a twenty three year old Burkinabe woman, Lengane Audrey, who was reportedly held captive by the suspects.

Based on intelligence from the NCB, a team of detectives from Interpol’s Force CID Annex in Ikoyi traced the suspects to Harmony Estate, Abeokuta. During the operation, sixteen victims were rescued, including Burkinabe nationals, twelve Ghanaians, one Togolese, and one Ivorian. Investigators allege that the suspects lured victims from neighboring countries into Nigeria under the pretense of helping them secure Canadian visas, extorted money from them, and detained them while demanding additional ransom.

During interrogation, the suspects reportedly admitted collecting one million, eight hundred and sixty nine thousand CFA francs, equivalent to four million, seven hundred and ninety thousand, thirty six naira and seventy seven kobo, as ransom. A proposed charge sheet was attached as an exhibit in the affidavit. The affidavit further stated that twelve of the rescued victims had been handed over to the Consular General of the Ghana High Commission on December 3, 2025.

Authorities emphasized that granting the remand application was essential to ensure a thorough investigation, secure the remaining evidence, and bring the perpetrators to justice. The case highlights the ongoing threat posed by transnational kidnapping networks in West Africa and the coordinated efforts of Nigerian security agencies to combat them.