Despite the order of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) Chairman, Ola Olukoyede, banning night sting operations, personnel of the commission have failed to adhere to the directive.
Findings by SaharaReporters revealed that EFCC officials carried out operations in the APC Quarters in Suleja, Niger State, over several consecutive days, conducting raids in the early hours of the morning. Sources say the raids began last Wednesday.
CCTV footage obtained by SaharaReporters shows two Coaster buses used during the operations and confirms that the raids took place around 3 a.m.
Residents, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the officials carried out indiscriminate arrests, justifying their actions by claiming they had intelligence about internet fraudsters, popularly called ‘Yahoo boys’, allegedly residing in the area.
“The EFCC personnel do not just come, they break into homes and cart away any properties they see in the homes of their suspect,” a resident told SaharaReporters.
Another resident noted that innocent persons were arrested and detained for days.
“A man was arrested, and he was in their custody for four days before he was released. He is not even guilty of their claims,” the resident said.
Some residents said they were forced to leave the area for fear of being targeted.
“The issue is not even their invasion, which they wrongly do in the middle of the night; the issue again is that people’s houses are burgled, they do not knock on your doors, they break into them, and it is scary. Imagine the torture of being wrongly accused and then you are said to be innocent after all these tortures,” a resident who spoke on condition of anonymity told SaharaReporters.
In November 2023, the EFCC announced a ban on night sting operations across all its commands.
A statement on the commission’s website read: “In line with the newly-revised procedures on arrest and bail of suspects by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, the Executive Chairman of the Commission, Mr. Ola Olukoyede, has directed that sting operations at night time be stopped in all the Commands of the EFCC.
The directive followed public outrage after a night raid in Ile-Ife, where 69 students of Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU) were arrested in a massive operation on hostels by EFCC officials.
The incident captured several students being marched into a white Hummer Bus, with some security officials hitting them and ordering them to move quickly.
In another video, about six vehicles were seen alongside the white Hummer Bus on the move.
In a related incident, in February 2024, men suspected to be operatives of the EFCC were also said to have carried out a midnight operation at the Federal University of Technology, Akure (FUTA), in Ondo State.
Students’ lodges were reportedly invaded at about 2 a.m.
Some students took to social media, sharing videos and alleging that the men broke into rooms and arrested some students.
WATCH: EFCC Operatives Flout Chairman Olukoyede’s Directive On Night Raids, Carry Out 3 a.m. Operation In Suleja pic.twitter.com/4OgUc1uWPp
— Sahara Reporters (@SaharaReporters) October 6, 2025
