A 30-year-old man, Sunday Pada, was beaten to death by a mob in the Korokpan district of Minna, Niger State, after being accused of stealing.
Wasiu Abiodun, the Niger State Police Public Relations Officer, announced in a statement on Tuesday that four individuals had been apprehended in relation to the event.
In separate operations throughout the state, the command said it apprehended 15 more suspects for alleged theft, damage, extortion, fraud, and other offenses.
According to Abiodun, the event involving Pada occurred on August 10, 2026, when an alarm was sounded accusing him of theft.
He said police from the Paiko Division were called and dispatched to the area, but the suspects escaped before they arrived, and the victim was taken to a nearby hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
Abiodun stated that three of the suspects were later discovered in the custody of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency following a raid in the region and handed over to police, while another was apprehended.
He named the suspects as Ibrahim Abubakar, Aliyu Onah, Godwin Musa, and Aminu Bawa, all of whom lived in Minna’s Korokpan district.
“During the investigation, it was revealed that the deceased was coming from a friend’s house, and the suspects claimed that somebody raised an alarm, shouting ‘thief,’ thereby intercepting the said Sunday Pada, beaten seriously and later stabbed to death,” the PPRO said.
He stated that the four suspects are being investigated by the State Criminal Investigation Department of Minnesota for alleged criminal conspiracy and culpable homicide.
Meanwhile, Abiodun reported that the command’s tactical team discovered an AK-47 rifle and ammo along a suspected bandit path near Krusha-Genu village in Rijau Local Government Area.
He stated that the recovery was achieved on August 15 after receiving information from a credible source.
He noted, “Operatives recovered an AK-47 rifle with a magazine containing 19 rounds of live ammunition, another empty magazine, and 55 rounds of GPMG anti-aircraft ammunition.
“The items are in custody undergoing forensic investigation and analysis, while the joint clearance operations are intensified,” Abiodun said.
In another operation, the command apprehended three individuals who allegedly stole goats and other animals in the Gidan-Kwano area.
Abiodun reported that the suspects, Danlami Ali, 45; Sabastine Masangu, 49; and Masaud Abdullahi, 35, were apprehended in a black Volkswagen vehicle.
The PPRO reported that animal skins suspected of being stolen were found from the car.
“It was also established that the syndicate specialized in stealing goats and other animals within the community with the use of the tinted vehicle,” Abiodun added.
He also stated that four other individuals had been arrested in Minna for alleged criminal conspiracy, extortion, and fraud in connection with a bogus QNET internet investment scheme.
According to police, the suspects allegedly enticed a victim from Kano to Minna with a phony work offer before transporting him to a house in Farm Center.
The suspect allegedly demanded N200,000 from the victim for an internet investment when he arrived in Minna.
“The victim insisted that he came for the job offer and not for online investment, but the suspects intimidated him and made him transfer the two hundred thousand naira to the account of one Aminu Bello,” Abiodun said.
He went on to say that the suspects requested an additional N200,000, which the victim refused, and that he was then allegedly slapped.
“During the time for prayer, the victim was able to escape from the house, and he was intercepted by the police before narrating the details,” he stated.
In another operation, the command apprehended two individuals in separate cases of alleged theft from articulated vehicles on the Mokwa-Jebba route.
In one case, Abiodun claimed police detained Ibrahim Mohammed after suspected thieves allegedly abandoned him while attempting to steal spaghetti cartons from a parked vehicle in Kpaki village.
The truck driver, who had stopped to pray in the morning, reportedly called the authorities after seeing the accused.
“On sighting the police, the hoodlums hurriedly zoomed off, leaving one of the suspects behind, and he was immediately arrested,” Abiodun said.
In another case, Abdulhakeem Sani was apprehended after police received information that suspected stolen goods were being unloaded at a home in Lafiagi village.
“Cartons of Nestle beverages were recovered, while the owner was later identified and contacted,” the PPRO said.
