Crimes in Nigeria
In-depth stories and reports on major crimes, notorious criminals, financial fraud, organized crime networks, and justice in Nigeria.
Street Lords of Lagos: Youth Gangs and Urban Struggle
Before Lagos became a vast megacity of over 20 million people, its inner suburbs, Mushin, Oshodi, Agege, Bariga, and Yaba, had long been known...
Boko Haram Insurgency: Historical Roots and Contemporary Impact
The Boko Haram insurgency remains one of Nigeria’s most significant and destructive conflicts. The group, officially known as Jama‘atu Ahlis Sunna Lidda‘awati wal-Jihad (JASDJ),...
Kidnapping and Banditry in Nigeria’s History
Kidnapping and banditry have become defining features of Nigeria’s contemporary security landscape, yet both phenomena have roots extending back through centuries of socio-economic and...
The Myth of Ojokoro Terror: Lagos’ Era of Gang Violence and Community Survival
The name “Ojokoro Terror” does not exist in Nigeria’s official crime archives or mainstream media records. Yet, the legend persists in oral accounts across...
From Street Theft to Armed Networks: Nigeria’s 1990s Crime Evolution
During the 1990s, Nigeria’s criminal landscape underwent a major transformation. Petty urban theft evolved into organised, militarised highway and urban crimes, driven by economic...
Famous Armed Robbery Trials in Nigeria’s Legal History – Landmark cases and how they changed public perception.
In the decades following Nigeria's independence, the nation grappled with escalating waves of violent, organised criminality that not only alarmed the public but also...
The Origins of Armed Robbery in Colonial Nigeria: How colonial economic changes and urban migration laid the groundwork for organized robbery.
When Nigerians speak of armed robbery today, it is often imagined as a problem that emerged in the years after independence. Yet the roots...
The Role of Nollywood in Immortalizing Robbery Legends
The emergence of Nollywood in the early 1990s marked a cultural turning point in Nigeria. It created a new platform for telling local stories...
From Armed Robbery to Kidnapping: The Changing Face of Violent Crime in Nigeria – Why many armed robbers switched crimes.
Nigeria’s landscape of violent crime has changed markedly since independence. What began in the decades after independence as banditry and armed robbery in urban...
The Evolution of Nigeria’s Prison System: Crime, Punishment, and Reform
IntroductionNigeria’s prison system is one of the country’s oldest institutions, tracing its roots to colonial administration and continuing to reflect broader struggles around law,...