Luck has finally run out for a man identified as Mr. Godwin, who had been posing as a mentally unstable person in a bid to mask his alleged involvement in criminal activities in the Epe area of Lagos State.
Operatives of the Lagos State Neighbourhood Safety Corps (LNSC), Epe Command, apprehended the suspect following over a month of discreet surveillance prompted by intelligence reports and heightened suspicion from vigilant community members.
Godwin, a native of Ughelli Local Government Area in Delta State, had drawn attention due to several suspicious behaviours—among them, routinely changing clothes in secret each morning and engaging in frequent phone conversations late at night.
According to the LNSC, the suspect had been using an abandoned security post along Lagos Road, near the T-junction in Epe, as a base. Concerned residents alerted authorities after noticing his increasingly odd movements.
During a routine patrol on May 5, residents informed LNSC operatives that the suspect was temporarily away. Acting swiftly, officers searched the location and uncovered 27 registered SIM cards hidden inside a section of the block wall.
Officers laid an ambush and arrested Godwin shortly after he returned to the scene. During preliminary interrogation, he confirmed his name and origin but refused to disclose the whereabouts of any mobile phones associated with the SIM cards.
A local food vendor who had interacted with him noted that despite his disheveled appearance and behavior, his speech and mannerisms suggested he was mentally sound.
“The discovery of the SIM cards, coupled with intelligence reports and community observations, raises serious concerns about the suspect’s true intentions and possible links to kidnapping or other criminal operations,” the LNSC said in a statement.
Godwin is currently in custody as investigations continue.