The Lagos State Police Command has arrested 13 suspected members of a notorious “one-chance” and kidnapping syndicate and uncovered what investigators describe as a criminal den disguised as a traditional shrine in the Idimu area of the state.

The premises, located along Pipeline Road in Idimu, appeared from the outside to be an ordinary compound. Inside, however, police say they found a cramped room allegedly used to detain victims who refused to cooperate with the gang’s elaborate fraud schemes, as well as items believed to have been deployed to intimidate and psychologically manipulate targets.

The Commissioner of Police, Olohundare Jimoh, led journalists and senior officers on a tour of the site, explaining that the discovery followed days of intelligence-led operations and targeted stop-and-search deployments across key parts of Lagos.

According to Jimoh, the syndicate specialised in “one-chance” operations, a form of robbery and fraud in which unsuspecting passengers are lured into commercial vehicles operated by criminals who then dispossess them of cash and valuables. In this case, he said, the gang’s activities frequently escalated into full-blown kidnapping when victims resisted or saw through the scam.

Police sources said the breakthrough came after operatives on patrol intercepted three men in a vehicle at Bode Thomas in the Surulere area in the early hours of a Sunday. The vehicle, a Toyota Sienna, was allegedly one of several used by the syndicate to pick up victims from bus stops and deserted streets, particularly at night and in the early morning.

Jimoh explained that the suspects were flagged down during a routine stop-and-search operation that had been intensified in response to complaints from residents about suspicious vehicles and rising incidents of “one-chance” robberies along certain routes.

“The syndicate usually lured victims under the pretence of selling dollars or offering fake investment schemes that promised to double money before taking them to the shrine,” the Commissioner said during the tour.

He identified the alleged ringleader as one Demola Adelua, describing him as a veteran fraudster who had “been operating for over eight years” and who allegedly controlled about six operational teams scattered across Lagos.

“If victims cooperate and they succeed in defrauding them, they release them. But if the victim is too smart and refuses to cooperate, they bring the person here, lock them inside this room they call a shrine, and then call their relatives to demand ransom,” Jimoh said, pointing to a small, windowless chamber inside the compound.

The Commissioner stressed that while Lagos had not recorded widespread incidents of conventional, armed abduction-for-ransom cases in recent months, criminal gangs involved in “one-chance” operations were increasingly resorting to kidnapping tactics when their initial scams failed.

He added that the syndicate appeared to have carefully profiled its targets, often focusing on worshippers heading to mosques and churches in the early hours of the morning, when streets are relatively quiet and security presence is thinner.

“Only two formal complaints were initially received, which prompted the command to establish tactical stop-and-search points in the identified axis,” he said. “The three suspects arrested led us to this operational base. We conducted an on-the-spot search and recovered weapons used for their criminal activities.”

Following the discovery of the Idimu base, police operatives carried out further raids in the surrounding area, arresting additional suspects believed to be linked to the network. In all, 13 alleged members of the syndicate were taken into custody, with investigators still pursuing others said to be on the run.

Jimoh disclosed that the gang operated with at least six vehicles, including the Toyota Sienna already recovered. Efforts, he said, were ongoing to trace and seize the remaining vehicles, which are believed to have been used to ferry victims from different parts of the city to the shrine.

During the media tour, some of the suspects spoke to journalists, offering a rare glimpse into the inner workings of the criminal enterprise.

One of them, identified as Rotimi Adilola, admitted that the Idimu premises served as an operational base for the group. Another suspect, who gave his name as Amos Ogunna, claimed ownership of the shrine itself and attempted to portray it as a spiritual centre.

“This is my shrine. He is my friend. I knew him through my brother, and I stayed with him in Ijegun. We are local 419. My colleagues bring customers with a motor. Sometimes people pay N100,000, sometimes N200,000,” Ogunna said, referring to the group’s fraudulent activities.

Another suspect, Emmanuel Njoku, who said he was arrested at Bode Thomas, described how victims were lured into the vehicle and eventually brought to the shrine.

“We go there to carry people. We tell them we are going to Lagos. Somebody will say she has dollars. Anybody who is greedy will ask questions. From there, we interview the person and bring them here,” he said.

Njoku, who claimed to be about 60 years old, admitted he had been involved in the scheme for roughly eight years in Lagos. He insisted that some victims who refused to cooperate were sometimes released after being given transport fare, but police say several accounts from suspects and complainants indicate that others were held until relatives paid ransom.

A female suspect, who identified herself as Tina Willy from Akwa Ibom State, told reporters she joined the group after the death of her husband left her in financial distress.

“I am not working with them steadily. My husband died, and I had no money. I met my brother, who introduced me to the business, and that was how I followed them. There was a woman they carried before. She did not play along, and they called her family to pay ransom,” she said, confirming that the gang had, on occasion, fully kidnapped victims.

Another suspect admitted he had previously been imprisoned for a fraud-related offence involving N300,000 and said he spent four months in custody before returning to Lagos.

Police say the suspects will be subjected to further interrogation and profiling, with investigators working to link them to unsolved cases of “one-chance” robbery, abduction, and fraud reported across the state. The command is also reaching out to potential victims who may recognise the suspects or the vehicles used.

Jimoh assured residents that the command was “on top of the security situation” and vowed that all remaining members of the syndicate, including those believed to be operating from neighbouring states but striking in Lagos, would be tracked down.