Three men kidnap police officer, destroy phone worth N185,000 in Lagos.

On Thursday, three men—Olayinka Idowu, 39; Caleb Saviour, 45; and Andrew Ogoh, 36—were charged with kidnapping and assault and appeared before an Ikeja Magistrates’ Court in the Ogba neighborhood of Lagos State.

Inspector Shola Akindeko, a police officer, was allegedly kidnapped by the defendants, taken to an unidentified location, and then assaulted.

Idowu, one of the suspects, is accused of destroying the policeman’s iPhone XR, which was worth N185,000.

Idowu, Saviour, and Ogoh were additionally charged with three counts of assault that were technically felonies, including assault causing bodily harm and causing a breach of public peace.

Inspector Josephine Ikhayyera, the police prosecutor, stated that the crime was punished under Articles 411, 168(D), and 350 of the Lagos State Criminal Laws of Nigeria (2015).

The charge read, “That you, Olayinka Idowu, Caleb Saviour and Andrew Ogoh on April 3, 2023, around 8.30pm at BRT Garage Awori U-turn, Abule-Egba in the Ikeja Magisterial District did commit felony to wit assault occasioning harm and thereby committed an offence contrary to and punishable under Section 411 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State of Nigeria, 2015.

“That you, Olayinka Idowu, Caleb Saviour and Andrew Ogoh, on April 3, 2023, around 8.30pm at BRT Garage Awori U-turn, Abule-Egba in the Ikeja Magisterial District did conduct yourselves in a manner likely to cause a breach of peace by forcefully taking an officer to an unknown destination and thereby committed an offence contrary to and punishable under Section 168(D) of the Criminal Law of Lagos State of Nigeria, 2015.

“That you, Olayinka Idowu, on the same date, time and place at the aforementioned Magisterial District did wilfully damage iPhone XR valued at N185,000 property of Inspector Shola Akindeko and thereby committed an offence contrary to and punishable under Section 350 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State of Nigeria, 2015.”

Yet, they entered a not guilty plea to the accusations.

The suspect had the choice to pay a fine of N150,000 with two sureties each in the same amount, according to Magistrate L.A. Owolabi.

The case was therefore postponed until May 3 for mention by Owolabi.