• Armed men in NSCDC uniforms raid hotel, torture guests
• Hotel CEO alleges business dispute led to attack
• Police recover stolen generator, suspect released
A gang of heavily armed men, some dressed in Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) uniforms, raided Seafortunes Hotels Limited on Ago Palace Way, Lagos, last weekend. The attackers, numbering about 30, stormed the hotel around 4 a.m., firing shots and assaulting guests before making away with the hotel’s industrial generator.
According to eyewitness accounts, the group comprised 15 masked men in NSCDC uniforms wielding automatic weapons and another 15 individuals who initially claimed to be police officers. They reportedly demanded to see the hotel’s owner, and upon failing to locate him, they held staff and guests hostage for over an hour before using a crane to remove the generator.
The hotel’s CEO, Nwukwa Okechukwu Fortune, linked the invasion to a financial dispute involving a former hotel manager, Mr. Ogbonna, who had leased the business. Fortune explained that Ogbonna had defaulted on payments, leading to his disengagement. Following this, a diesel supplier, Mr. Nicholas, claimed the hotel owed him ₦3 million for diesel supplied to Ogbonna. Despite being shown legal documents proving that the debt was Ogbonna’s responsibility, Nicholas reportedly pursued the hotel for payment.
Nicholas had previously petitioned the police at Area E Command over the debt, leading to Ogbonna’s arrest and eventual arraignment in court. However, Nicholas failed to appear for the case, and six months later, the armed attack on the hotel occurred
CCTV footage from the hotel reportedly captured Nicholas leading the uniformed attackers to the generator. The gang allegedly forced staff and guests to lie face down before dismantling the generator and loading it onto a truck. The raid left the hotel in disarray, with customers fleeing, personal belongings lost, and business operations crippled for a week.
Following the incident, police traced Nicholas to Festac, arrested him, and recovered the stolen generator. Nicholas then revealed the identities of some NSCDC officers allegedly involved in the raid. However, despite promises that the suspects would be brought in for questioning, Nicholas was reportedly released by the police the next day, and no NSCDC personnel turned up for interrogation.
When contacted, NSCDC Lagos Public Relations Officer Seun Abolurin stated that the agency had not received any report of such an incident and cautioned against assuming the attackers were genuine NSCDC officers. He advised the hotel management to officially report the case to NSCDC for proper investigation.
Meanwhile, Lagos State Police Command spokesman Benjamin Hundeyin confirmed that the matter had been reported and said he would follow up on the investigation. A source at Ago Palace Police Station, speaking anonymously, admitted that officers were still working to verify whether the attackers were truly NSCDC personnel.
As investigations continue, the incident has raised concerns about the growing use of security uniforms by criminal elements to carry out coordinated attacks.
