A 26-year-old housewife, Mrs. Misturah Bada, and her accomplice, Adedamola Daniel, 30, have both been arrested by Lagos State Police Command for allegedly staging her own kidnapping and extorting ₦2.5 million from her husband, a Nigerian resident in South Africa.
Accreditation to the state Police the case was reported on November 24, 2025, at about 10:00 p.m., when the husband contacted the Command through an emergency line, claiming his wife had been abducted by armed men who demanded a ransom of ₦10 million, later reduced to ₦3 million. Despite paying ₦2.5 million, the alleged kidnappers failed to release the victim.
Following the report, operatives of the Command Special Squad deployed technical and intelligence resources to track the supposed kidnappers. Mrs. Bada was later “released” and reunited with her family. During police debriefing, she claimed she was abducted by six armed men in a silver Toyota Venza, taken to a hideout, and dispossessed of her iPhone 12 Pro Max.
She also told investigators that the ransom was first paid into her bank account before being handed over to the kidnappers.
However, police said further investigation revealed inconsistencies in her account. On December 3, 2025, detectives arrested Adedamola Daniel in Ede, Osun State. A SIM card linked to the WhatsApp account used for ransom negotiations was recovered from him. During interrogation, Daniel allegedly confessed that Mrs. Bada requested his SIM card to open the WhatsApp account and that he provided the one-time password (OTP) sent to his line, enabling her to operate the account.
Police said Mrs. Bada later admitted to faking her own kidnapping to extort money from her husband. Investigations also led to the recovery of the iPhone 12 Pro Max she earlier claimed was with the kidnappers. The phone was recovered from one Yusuf Sodiq, 34, who reportedly told police he bought it from Mrs. Bada for ₦380,000 and was warned not to insert a SIM card into it.
The Lagos State Commissioner of Police, CP Olohundare Jimoh, warned the public against false reporting, criminal deception, and acts capable of diverting critical security resources. He reiterated the Command’s commitment to protecting lives and property and urged residents to promptly report suspicious activities through the police emergency lines.
Police said investigations are ongoing and the suspects will be charged to court upon conclusion of the case.
