Journalist Allegedly Abducted as Police and CBN Face Explosive Accusations

(Ms. Emem Nnanna Etuk Usoro and Mr Disu. Photo by Sahara Reports)

The Nigeria Police Force and the Central Bank of Nigeria have come under scrutiny following claims that security operatives abd@cted a journalist, Stanley Ugagbe, allegedly on the instructions of the CBN's Deputy Governor for Operations, Ms Emem Nnanna Etuk Usoro.

The allegation was made public on Thursday by the publisher of an online news platform, Fejiro Oliver, who accused the police of unlawfully abd@cting the journalist over an investigative report involving the senior CBN official.

According to Oliver, Ugagbe was seized by armed men shortly after returning from a training programme sponsored by his media organisation.

He alleged that security operatives, acting on the orders of the CBN Deputy Governor, abd@cted the reporter over a story linking her to an extramarital relationship with a man named Jerry Edirin, which the man's wife had referenced in court filings, as well as allegations that she owned two properties in the US worth over N4 billion.

He said the journalist was picked up on Wednesday while returning from an official assignment, adding that Ugagbe also serves as operations manager for a network combating corruption and tr@fficking.

Oliver said the circumstances of the operation raised serious concerns about abuse of power, intimidation of journalists and possible extrajudicial conduct.

He alleged that the armed men who stormed Ugagbe's residence after seizing him carried Israeli-made rifles and forced their way in to confiscate his official phone and laptop.

He said that upon learning this, he contacted the Director-General of the Department of State Services, Tosin Ajayi, who responded promptly.

According to Oliver, the DSS chief called the Director of Operations into his office to ask whether any of the agency's personnel had arrested a reporter from his organisation, and was told no such operation had taken place.

Oliver said the DSS boss then directed that inquiries be made with the Federal Capital Territory command to determine whether any of their personnel were involved, and that about an hour later, an FCT command official identified as Dauda Esq. contacted him to deny that Ugagbe was in DSS custody.

Oliver said he believed the DSS leadership had distanced itself from using cybercrime allegations to target journalists, claiming he had personal experience of the agency previously declining to take part in such actions, including in a case involving him the previous year.

He alleged that further findings pointed to possible police involvement, noting that one of the men wore shorts and that the group arrived in an unmarked, tinted Mitsubishi Pajero, a detail he said was characteristic of the Nigerian Police.

He further accused senior police officials of showing little urgency in response to the matter, claiming the Inspector-General of Police was dismissive when contacted by phone and that the force's spokesperson had also not been helpful.

He said efforts to trace the journalist across several detention facilities in Abuja, including the former SARS unit, the FCT command and parts of police headquarters, had proven unsuccessful.

The publisher likened the alleged action to a kidn@pping, accusing the police of neglecting their constitutional duties at a time of worsening insecurity nationwide, and questioned why an operation would be carried out without documenting arrival at a base station.

He described the incident as an alleged kidn@pping and att3mpted @ssassination of his staff member, ordered by the CBN Deputy Governor, and warned that the journalist's continued disappearance could amount to an att3mpt at extrajudicial k!lling.

He called on the police to either release Ugagbe immediately or formally charge him in court.

The development follows an earlier investigative report published by the same online platform on January 29, 2026, detailing allegations about the personal life of the CBN Deputy Governor.

That report had cited judicial documents from the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory, which it said exposed allegations of adultery, abuse of influence and financial impropriety.

According to the report, the CBN official was named as a co-respondent in a matrimonial suit filed under a specific case number, stemming from a cross-petition brought by a woman identified as Mrs Grace Wesley against her late husband, Edirin Jerry Wesley, over allegations of adultery and desertion.

The report claimed the legal filings accused the CBN official, who was at the time a senior executive at a commercial bank, of engaging in a relationship with Mr Wesley while he remained legally married, and alleged that she was aware of the subsisting marriage at the time.

The filings reportedly further claimed that children were born from the relationship during the marriage.

Mrs Wesley was said to have asked the court to dissolve the marriage on grounds of irretrievable breakdown due to continuous adultery and desertion, while also seeking damages and a court order restraining the CBN official from presenting herself as Mr Wesley's lawful wife.

The earlier report additionally claimed that investigations had linked the CBN official to ownership of two properties in the United States valued at over N4 billion.