Lagos Socialite Abu Abel Arrested Over ₦447 Million Land Fraud

Popular Lagos socialite Olaseni Johnson Olayinika, widely known as Abu Abel, has been arrested by the police over his alleged involvement in a ₦447 million land scam.

Abel was apprehended by operatives of the Force Criminal Investigations Department (FCID), Alagbon, under the leadership of CSP Taiwo Oyewole, following a directive from Assistant Inspector-General of Police, AIG Margaret Ochalla.

Sources say the socialite, who had been evading arrest for several weeks, was found hiding in a residence in Victoria Island, where he had reportedly gone underground to avoid law enforcement and stall ongoing investigations.

His arrest came after a petition was filed by Doyin Investment Group of Companies, accusing him of fraudulently selling three plots of land located on Augustina Orji Street, within the Ojomu Chieftaincy Family land in Oke-Arin Village, Eti-Osa Local Government Area of Lagos.

According to the petition, Abel posed as the rightful owner of Plots 1, 4, and 10—totaling approximately 1,800 square metres—and convinced the company to pay ₦447 million in 2023. A Deed of Assignment was reportedly signed between both parties.

However, the company later discovered that the land was already under third-party claim. Upon being confronted, Abel admitted he was aware of the issue and promised a refund. He went on to repay ₦230 million but defaulted on the remaining ₦217 million.

The company further alleged that Abel became evasive and began issuing threats. On January 11, 2024, he signed a written undertaking to either repay the outstanding balance or forfeit a property located at Block C, Plot 22, Oba Amusa Adebambo Avenue, Lekki. Despite this, he failed to honour the agreement and instead filed a fundamental human rights enforcement suit—an act the police described as a deliberate attempt to obstruct justice.

After weeks of intelligence gathering, the FCID Tactical Team eventually tracked and arrested him at his Victoria Island hideout without resistance.

A senior officer involved in the case revealed that Abel is also being investigated for alleged links to a secret cult group involved in high-profile fraud, land grabbing, and criminal intimidation in Lagos and Ogun States.

“The arrest was carried out on the orders of AIG Margaret Ochalla and led by CSP Taiwo James. It was an intelligence-led operation and concluded successfully,” the officer said.

Key documents, including payment receipts, the Deed of Assignment, undertakings, and correspondence with the complainants, were recovered from the suspect.

Abel is expected to be arraigned soon on multiple charges, including obtaining money under false pretence, criminal breach of trust, and conspiracy to defraud—offences punishable under the Advance Fee Fraud and Other Related Offences Act, 2006, and the Criminal Code Act.

Doyin Investment Group has appealed to Inspector-General of Police, IGP Kayode Egbetokun, to ensure that justice is served and the outstanding ₦217 million is recovered.

“This was a calculated fraud. We paid legally and trusted the system. Now our company is bearing the loss. We thank the police for tracking him down and remain hopeful that justice will prevail,” a representative of the company said.

Efforts to reach the spokesperson of FCID Annex, Ameenat Maiyegun, were unsuccessful as calls to her mobile lines went unanswered at the time of filing this report.