ILORIN, Nigeria — Residents of Mandate Ogor Street in Ilorin, Kwara State, were left reeling after a team of fifteen Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) officials broke into a multi-tenanted apartment complex on Thursday, May 4, 2023.
The incident has raised questions about the conduct of the EFCC and the safety of ordinary Nigerians.
According to eyewitnesses, EFCC operatives scaled the barb-wired fence of the apartment complex around 1:30 am, proceeding to barge into multiple homes.
One resident, who requested anonymity, recounted the night’s events to FIJ: “At about 1:30 am, I heard someone screaming, ‘open the door’, while the door was being heavily hit at the same operation.
The resident described the EFCC agents as impatient and forceful, with some wearing face masks to conceal their identity.
The officials were searching for a “Yahoo boy,” a term used to describe internet fraudsters. The EFCC officials took away one neighbour during the operation.
The affected residents sought answers from the EFCC office, only to be met with arrogant dismissal. “When I got to their office, I was told by the EFCC officials that that was how they carried out their operation, that they had raided so many houses in Ilorin,” the anonymous resident said.
Another occupant, a staff member of Sobi 101.9 FM, Ilorin, stated that her home was broken into while she was visiting her mother. “They broke into my room with a stone and searched and walked everywhere, probably they thought I was hiding or something,” she said.
The Ilorin EFCC command has confirmed the incident, with a receptionist stating, “I know they went to arrest, but I don’t know what happened there because I was not among the operatives that went for the operation.”
The EFCC’s actions have raised concerns about the safety of ordinary Nigerians and the methods employed by the Commission. The residents of Mandate Ogor Street are left to deal with the aftermath of the raid, questioning the integrity of those tasked with protecting them
