By Oladipo Oluwatosin
ATAN, OGUN STATE — In the digital age, the line between harmless entertainment and public disruption has become dangerously thin. What began as a desperate bid for social media validation by a local youth has culminated in a police arrest, an official interrogation, and a stark warning to Nigeria’s booming content creation industry.
The Ogun State Police Command, through the Atan-Ota Division led by CSP Oniyinku, under the supervision of ACP Tanaruno Folashade Anthonia, Area Commander, Agbara Area Command, on May 23, 2026, arrested a 25-year-old man, Kowiu Oloyede, for staging and circulating misleading videos that simulated banditry and kidnapping.
The staged content significantly disrupted public peace and triggered widespread panic in Atan and its surrounding communities.
The case is currently being handled by the State Criminal Investigation Department (SCID), Eleweran, Abeokuta, Ogun State.
From 60 Followers to Widespread Panic
According to an interrogation session led by DSP Oluseyi B. Babaseyi, the Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO) for the Ogun State Police Command, Oloyede’s motivations were rooted entirely in the pursuit of viral metrics.
Initially commanding a microscopic audience of just 60 followers, Oloyede noticed a trending audio format on TikTok featuring realistic simulated gunshot sounds. Driven by the high engagement other creators were receiving, he enlisted the help of neighborhood youths to film a dramatic video in a bushy area behind his shop.
The strategy worked too well. The video quickly gained massive traction, amassing thousands of views and skyrocketing his follower count toward the 1,000-user mark. However, as the likes poured in, so did terrified inquiries from the public asking if an active security crisis was unfolding in Atan.
Escalating the Script
Instead of deleting the content upon realizing its alarming nature, the intoxicating rush of algorithmic success pushed Oloyede to double down.
Motivated by what he described as "happiness" over his growing clout, he attempted to film a second, more realistic video. He targeted a local Fulani herder who routinely frequented his compound to charge his mobile phone. Despite the herder’s explicit refusal to participate in the video, Oloyede forced the interaction, kneeling to beg the man while a relative kept the camera rolling to capture the herder and his cattle for dramatic effect.
_"Inu mi dun pe mo ni followers... on lo fun mi ni push lati fe se ikeji yen."_ (I was happy that I got followers... it gave me the push to want to make a second video.)— Kowiu Oloyede, Suspect.
While Oloyede eventually deleted the second video after sensing it "wasn't good," copies had already bled into fake accounts, generating upwards of 8,000 likes and solidifying a false narrative of insecurity in the area.
The Cost of 'Clout'
During the interrogation, DSP Babaseyi pointed out the severe real-world consequences of online thoughtlessness, noting that while the creator was "happily causing panic," local residents were suffering from genuine terror and spike in anxiety.
The police investigation definitively concluded that the reports of banditry and kidnapping implied by Oloyede's videos were entirely fabricated. Oloyede has since confessed to the false nature of the videos, pleading ignorance to the legal implications of his actions.
DSP Oluseyi B. Babaseyi stated:
“Thank you very much. This serves as a warning to content creators and actors to be very cautious about the kind of content they produce and share.
No individual should create materials capable of causing panic within the community or society at large, because a single action or inaction can negatively affect an entire community or even the whole state.
Further investigations revealed that the alleged reports and videos of banditry and kidnapping circulated by Mr. Korede Oloyede, 25, were false and misleading. He confessed that the videos were staged and admitted that he created them in a bid to gain followers and become a content creator, imitating others in similar niches.
This is therefore a call to all content creators to operate within the ambit of the law and avoid generating panic simply for clout or online popularity.
It is also important to inform the general public that the Ogun State Police Command remains committed and proactive in combating kidnapping.
As we speak, there is no kidnapping victim currently in custody."
