A viral video alleging the presence of armed bandits in Ogun State has been described as a false and misleading narrative by the state police command, which stated that the footage originated from Kenya.
The spokesperson for the command, DSP Oluseyi Babaseyi, dismissed the claim on Sunday while speaking with Daily Post.
The footage, which recently made the rounds on social media, showed armed men allegedly operating within a forest in Ogun State.
The video was accompanied by a male voice saying: “We are trying to show you some video footage of the hideout of kidnappers here in Ogun State. We were able to capture this with our drone cameras, so people should be mindful of their movement henceforth.
“Yes, this is a hideout, can you see that? A lot of people are being detained by their captors… they are trying to aim at the drone camera but it’s not easy because, as you can see, the drone doesn’t stay stable. But thank God for this discovery; people should be very careful and mindful of their movements.”
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Reacting to the claim, DSP Babaseyi debunked the narrative, stating that the video did not originate from Ogun State or any part of Nigeria.
He added that credible fact-checks revealed the footage was recorded in Kenya during an operation involving cattle rustlers and was captured by a General Service Unit (GSU) drone.
“The video is false, misleading, and does not originate from Ogun State or any part of Nigeria,” he said.
Babaseyi added, “Preliminary findings reveal that the footage, which shows individuals cooking in a bush setting, was recorded in Kenya.
“Further verification indicates the video was first uploaded online in 2022 and has since been deliberately recirculated with a false narrative to create panic and misinform the public.”
Also commenting on the trending video, the Ogun State Commissioner of Police, CP Bode Ojajuni, condemned the spread of unverified and deceptive content, noting that such posts are capable of causing unnecessary fear and undermining public confidence in security agencies.
He stressed that there is no intelligence or operational report to support the claim of any such criminal presence within the forests of Ogun State.
He advised the public to disregard the viral video and called for calm, reassuring residents that the command remains proactive and committed to ensuring the safety of lives and property through intelligence-led policing and sustained operational vigilance across the state.