Police arrest fake EFCC operatives for kidnapping student in Niger State

The Niger State Police Command has arrested three individuals for impersonating operatives of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and engaging in the kidnapping and extortion of students in the Lapai area of the state.

The suspects — Emmanuel Linus (30), Hyelda Aliyu (28), and Abduljallid Tanko (33) — all residents of various areas in Abuja, were apprehended on May 13, 2025.

Their arrest followed a police operation that tracked a Toyota Corolla vehicle with a partially disclosed registration number used in the crime.

According to the Police Public Relations Officer, SP Wasiu Abiodun, the suspects used fake EFCC identification cards — all bearing the same ID number, 1069 — which were produced at a shop in Nyanya, Abuja.

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Disguised as EFCC agents and armed with tasers resembling firearms, they reportedly stormed a student’s room, seized five mobile phones, and abducted two individuals.

The suspects demanded a ransom of N10 million from the victims’ families, which was later reduced to N500,000 before police intervened and arrested them.

During interrogation, the suspects confessed to acting on information provided by two accomplices, Mohammed Hassan and Hamisu Adamu, both residents of Angwan-Hausa in Lapai.

The informants, who were also arrested, allegedly supplied detailed information about the students, having known Emmanuel Linus from Paiko.

Further investigations revealed that Emmanuel Linus is a former soldier with a criminal record and was recently released from prison within the last two years.

All five suspects are currently in custody at the State Criminal Investigation Department (SCID) and will be formally charged and prosecuted once investigations are concluded.

LUKMAN ABDULMALIK

The Star