A 19-year-old National Diploma holder of Yaba College of Technology, Lagos has been arrested by the operatives of Rapid Response Squad (RRS) for allegedly involving in the blackmail of Queen Salawa Abeni with nude photographs.
WITHIN NIGERIA learnt that the suspect identified as Olufowoke Oladunjoye Emmanuel who is a resident of Brentfield Avenue, Peace Estate, Magboro, Ogun State was picked up by the Decoy Team of Rapid Response Squad last week Thursday after three days of monitoring him.
Reacting on the development, the Lagos state Commissioner of Police, Mr. Hakeem Odumosu had directed the Commander, Rapid Response Squad, DCP Olatunji Disu to fish out the suspect when Queen Salawa Abeni raised the blackmail alarm sometime in April 2020.
It was learnt that the Decoy team narrowed down on the suspect few days after technical diagnosis of the complaint.
According to sources close to the team, the suspect couldn’t be picked because of the prevalence of Covid 19.
In a statement made available to newsmen by the police, the suspect confessed to have been the mastermind behind the ploy to publish some nude pictures of Waka Queen in exchange for money, adding that he was alone in the scheme.
The suspect, a 2017/2018 Electrical Engineering student of Yabatech, disclosed that he saw the nude pictures in a memory card which he picked up on the floor in Yabatech sometime in November 2019.
He added that after downloading the nude photographs of Salawa Abeni on his phone, he picked up her mobile number from her Instagram page.
“On 1st of April, 2020, I chatted her up and also called her after sending few of the photos to her online.
“I thought everything was going on fine until the following day when I heard the news of the blackmail over the radio. I was with my mother. She was even cursing the blackmailer unknown to her that I was the brain behind it.
I immediately sneaked out, destroyed the memory card and threw my mobile phone and SIM card into nearby wetland in Magboro. Since then, I never mentioned it to anyone and called Madam Salawa Abeni about it again”, he disclosed.
Reacting on the arrest, CP Hakeem Odumosu stated that no individual would be allowed to commit a crime in Lagos from any State or escape to other States in Nigeria to evade arrest.
He advised guardians to monitor their wards, emphasizing that the internet is a fertile ground for opportunities but the State Command would not allow criminals use it as avenue to exploit law – abiding Lagosians.
