By Ado Oyeyemi
A 22-year-old woman, Onyekachi Mmerichukwu, and a nurse have been remanded at the Kirikiri Correctional Centre in Lagos over allegations of defrauding a man of N16.17m through a fake pregnancy scheme and procuring an illegal abortion.
The Assistant Inspector-General of Police in charge of the Force Criminal Investigation Department Annex, Lagos, Simeon Akpanudom, disclosed this while briefing journalists on Thursday.
Akpanudom said the investigation followed a petition filed by a man identified as Olajide, who accused Mmerichukwu, said to be his fiancée, of falsely claiming to be pregnant and collecting millions of naira from him for pregnancy-related expenses.
According to the police, the suspect allegedly obtained a total of N16.17m from the complainant under the guise of antenatal care, medical treatment and other expenses linked to the purported pregnancy.
The AIG said investigations led detectives to arrest Mmerichukwu and a nurse attached to a private medical facility.
He explained that findings revealed the pregnancy was later terminated at a hospital in the Ajah area of Lagos.
Akpanudom alleged that the abortion was carried out for personal reasons rather than medical necessity, adding that efforts were ongoing to apprehend the medical director of the hospital, who was allegedly involved in the procedure.
“The two suspects have been remanded at the Kirikiri Correctional Centre while investigation continues to arrest the medical director of the hospital, who allegedly procured the illegal abortion in collaboration with the nurse,” he said.
The police chief also highlighted ongoing reforms at the FCID Annex since assuming office on March 30, 2026, noting that the command had intensified training programmes to improve the investigative capacity of its personnel.
He disclosed that 30 detectives recently underwent specialised training in cryptocurrency tracing and investigation through a partnership involving the United States Diplomatic Security Service, the Regional Security Office, the Internal Revenue Service and the US Consulate General in Lagos.
According to him, six other officers also received training sponsored by the Lagos State Security Trust Fund to enhance professionalism, ethical standards and inter-agency collaboration, while more personnel have been nominated for additional courses approved by the Inspector-General of Police.
Akpanudom further said infrastructure upgrades were ongoing at the FCID Annex, including the construction of a sentry slab and photo stand, installation of solar-powered lighting, office signages and renovation of holding cells.
He also announced the arrest of three suspected vandals linked to the destruction of telecommunications facilities and other critical infrastructure across Lagos.
The suspects were identified as Ezekiel Omoloye, 46; Olaoluwa Shuwunmi, 44; and Olaleye Kehinde, 41.
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Items recovered from them included a locally made pistol, one live cartridge, a Deep Sea electronic memory device, four solar batteries, six solar modules, a cable cutter, heavy-duty cutting tools, ropes, two tricycles and two vehicles believed to have been used in their operations.
