By SUNTV Global Channel | December 24, 2025
Nigeria’s National Security Adviser (NSA), Mallam Nuhu Ribadu, has raised fresh concerns over a disturbing twist in the country’s kidnapping crisis, revealing that some Nigerians now deliberately stage their own abductions to extort money from family members.
Speaking on the worsening internal security situation, Ribadu said the challenge is no longer limited to criminal gangs alone, but increasingly involves ordinary citizens who collaborate with kidnappers or fabricate kidnapping scenarios purely for financial gain.
According to the NSA, security agencies have uncovered cases where supposed victims were not abducted by criminal syndicates, but instead conspired with friends or acquaintances to deceive their families into paying ransom.
“We are talking about the population informing the kidnappers. We are even having situations where people arrange with themselves to kidnap themselves just to collect ransom from their families,” Ribadu disclosed.
He cited specific instances where individuals planned their own abductions, sometimes with close friends, solely to extort money from unsuspecting parents or relatives.
“I have seen situations where a boy arranged with his friends to kidnap him so that his father could pay the ransom,” he said.
More alarming, Ribadu warned, is the growing use of technology in staging fake kidnappings. He revealed that artificial intelligence tools are now being deployed to clone voices and simulate distress calls, making it difficult for families to determine whether ransom demands are genuine.
“There are AI tools where you can change your voice. You call, claim you’ve been kidnapped, demand ransom, pay yourself, and later reappear,” he explained.
The NSA cautioned that such practices are undermining genuine security operations and eroding public trust, as families are increasingly left in doubt over the authenticity of kidnapping claims.
He also stressed that community complicity remains a major obstacle in the fight against kidnapping, alleging that insiders often provide intelligence, logistics and cover for criminal activities.
Calling for urgent societal reorientation, Ribadu urged Nigerians to take collective responsibility for national security rather than aiding criminality.
“There is a need to resuscitate the population,” he said, emphasizing the importance of public enlightenment, vigilance and active cooperation with law enforcement agencies.
SUNTV Global Channel will continue to monitor and report developments on Nigeria’s security challenges as they unfold.
