The Lagos State Police Command has detained 26 foreign nationals after investigations revealed that a reported kidnapping case was allegedly fabricated.
Security officials said the incident initially triggered a rescue operation before later findings showed inconsistencies in the complaint.
According to police sources, the arrested individuals include 19 citizens of Chad and seven Cameroonians, all currently undergoing interrogation and profiling.
The suspects were picked up during an investigation into a report filed by a 22-year-old Cameroonian woman who claimed she had been abducted after arriving in Nigeria.
Preliminary investigations revealed that the woman had travelled to Nigeria to meet a 39-year-old Chadian man she reportedly met through online communication.
However, the situation escalated after she allegedly discovered that the man was already married, prompting her to raise a false alarm.
Police said the complaint was initially treated as a genuine kidnapping case, leading to an emergency response operation on June 16.
The Lagos State Commissioner of Police, Mr Fatai Tijani, ordered that the case be transferred from the Area N Command, Ijede, Ikorodu, to the State Criminal Investigation Department (SCID), Yaba for deeper investigation.
A senior police source confirmed that language barriers complicated initial interrogation, as the complainant could not communicate effectively in English.
This, according to the source, contributed to the initial belief that she was a victim of kidnapping.
Investigators later traced the location where the woman claimed she was held and discovered multiple foreign nationals living in the same apartment.
The police source said the operation led to the arrest of 26 individuals aged between 19 and 50 years, including four women.
Some of the suspects reportedly claimed they were engaged in a networking business linked to an organisation identified as Ignite.
Authorities also discovered that several of the foreign nationals could not present valid travel documents, raising suspicions of irregular entry into Nigeria.
The suspects are currently undergoing immigration verification, profiling, and further interrogation to determine their legal status.
The case is being handled by the Diplomatic and Foreigners Desk of the SCID, under the supervision of Deputy Commissioner of Police Dayo Akinbisehin.
Police said investigations are ongoing, and appropriate action will be taken once the process is concluded.
