A Lagos-based firm, LaBIONAR Services Ltd, has called on the Inspector-General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun, to intervene following alleged threats to the lives of its workers by persons believed to be land grabbers in the Ikorodu area of Lagos State.
Representative of the firm, Dr Alaba Sadiq, said that in contention are plots of land located in Isiwu under Imota Division of Ikorodu Local Council.
Sadiq recounted that, on October 30, 2025, five surveyors from the company and Rev. Fr. Onyebuchi Martin, sent by the Catholic Archdiocese of Lagos to inspect the land, were threatened on the site by a gunman.
“One of the surveyors, Kolawole Ojo, called me, in a shaky voice, to report the threat. Rev. Fr. Martin also spoke with me on the phone,” Sadiq said.
“I asked them to leave the site. As they got into the car, one of them snapped a photo of the man with the gun and forwarded it to me.”
Sadiq said the firm reported the matter to the Assistant Inspector-General of Police, Zone Two Command, Onikan, Lagos, on November 1, 2025, as early as 8:00a.m. And formally submitted a petition on November 3, 2025, citing criminal assault, threat to life, and kidnapping.
Sadiq said she was worried about the seriousness and pace with which the police were treating the petition.
She warned that delays by the police could lead to more loss of lives.
She said, “On January 5, 2026, Rev. Fr. Martin and the surveyors made written statements before CSP Uba Adams of the Oracle Unit.
“On January 7,2026,the police searched the suspect’s house but found only charms and fetish items. Since then, the investigation has been largely abandoned. We were simply told to continue our work on the site.
“Nigeria currently battles insecurity, insurgency, and banditry. Land grabbing is robbery in disguise. Omo-oniles and certain families demand repeated payments and intimidate anyone who resists. Without swift intervention, the cycle will continue.”
She further alleged that the case was reported to the Zone Two Command, Ikorodu, as a case of threat to life involving armed individuals.
She, however, said it was shocking that the case was taken to court as a land dispute rather than a criminal matter.
Responding during a phone conversation, the Assistant Inspector-General of Police, Zone Two, Mr Adegoke Fayoade, said he could not immediately recall the said petition, as he noted that his office receives numerous complaints daily.
Fayoade said, “There are many complaints. You cannot expect me to know all of them.
“I don’t know the matter you are talking about. Hundreds of matters come here, so I’m not supposed to carry everything in my brain,” he said.
The AIG maintained that if there were complaints about how the matter was handled, the appropriate step would be for the complainants to appear before him directly.
“If there is any issue, it is always better to come and see me physically. I will find out who is handling the matter, and I will be able to know the details and what has been done about it,” he said.
When asked about the case of an alleged threat to life, it turned out to be a land matter in court, Fayoade said he could not confirm the claim.
“I don’t know the matter you are talking about,” he said.
He added that any lapses identified after reviewing the case could still be corrected.
“Let them come to the office tomorrow. If anything has not been done properly, it will be done properly,” Fayoade said.
