Claim “bandit pastor” was arrested in Oyo, misleading

Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...

Elizabeth Ogunbamowo

Claim: Social media users shared photos of a group of criminals purportedly arrested in Oyo State, alleging ït includes a “bandit pastor.”

Verdict: Misleading! There was no such arrest, and the image used to represent the claim was taken from another incident that occurred seven years ago in Imo State. 

Full Text

The security situation in Nigeria has worsened over the years, with several school kidnappings and attacks on worship places, as terrorists reportedly flaunt ransom payments on social media. 

Recently, an X user shared photos (archived here) of alleged criminals arrested by the police. In the image, the suspects’ recovered arms were displayed, with the men sitting on the floor.

The X user who shared this image alleged that one of the suspects is a “bandit pastor” and that the incident took place in Oyo State. 

Part of his caption reads, “Every Sunday, he stood before his congregation preaching peace, hope, and divine protection. The people trusted him. They revered him as a genuine man of God. Today, however, he sits in a prison cell accused of supplying weapons, drugs, and logistics to the very bandits terrorising innocent communities.”

Some of the users in the comment section doubted the claim. For instance, Ade_Niyiiii wrote, 

“I’ve seen the video of their arrest. The man in the Igbo dress is an Eze (traditional ruler/chief). He provides a vehicle for the bandits, while the man next to him, the pastor, is the leader of the operation. What I can’t ascertain is if it happened in Oyo.”

Another user, @Ochaidavid8, said, 

“I don’t believe this report, why so easy to get a group? The ones who came and took children from school are moving free in the bush; this story is not adding up.”

Meanwhile, the same claim has gone viral on Facebook, and many users have reshared the post here, here, and here. 

Other pages that shared the claim on Facebook (archived here) include Crested George Azi, Olalekan Badmus, Hammed Ishola, Ubah Ifeoma 

In the comment sections of these posts, some users immediately believed the claim, making comments that rouse religious biases, while others did not believe the post, claiming the image was generated by Artificial Intelligence (AI).

Facebook user, Akogun Oluwapamileronayo wrote, “They should also name his church, people are so wicked, OMG!”

Another user, Gbenga Ojewoye, commented, “Those who kidnapped Oyo children might not be Fulani then, there might be a mixture, wonders shall never end.”

Mercy Ladyp said, “This is AI”. Aladeogbiyegbe Aladegboyega wrote, “Firing squad judgement without prejudice.”

Joshua Dare Kau wrote, “There are many fake pastors.  So he is one of them.”

DUBAWA observed that the Facebook post was attributed to one Albab Abdullahi. A keyword search on Facebook for the name Albab Abdullahi brought out this profile and the post he made on June 19, 2026. 

When this user was asked for further details, such as the pastor’s name or the church, the user shared pictures of the alleged criminal instead. 

Due to the claim’s virality and sensitivity, DUBAWA decided to investigate it.

Verification 

DUBAWA observed a disclaimer (AI info) on the first post shared by Facebook user Albab Abdullahi. This disclaimer option is available to digital creators on Facebook to state when their post contains AI-generated or modified content. 

However, when DUBAWA ran an image search on the photo, the results showed that the arrest incident did indeed occur, but the image had now been modified and used in a misleading context. 

The picture was first shared online in 2020 when the Imo State Police Command arrested a traditional ruler, Andrew Okwuegbunwa, a pastor, and six others for allegedly kidnapping a police inspector and another from a community in Imo state.  

The Nation outlets also reported the incident. Andrew was said to be the ruler of the Uba-Agwa autonomous community in Ogugua LGA, who always made his vehicle available for criminal activities. 

TVC News also reported the speech of the then Imo Commissioner of Police and captured media men interviewing the suspects in August 2020.

Also, there is a discrepancy between the image in the viral posts and the one in the media reports. While the viral photo showed the suspects were handcuffed, in the image and videos seen on media reports, they weren’t handcuffed.

DUBAWA further searched credible news sources for recent reports of the Oyo State Police Command arresting a “bandit pastor”, but we found nothing of such. 

Conclusion

The claim that the Oyo State Police Command arrested a bandit pastor is false, and the image used to depict the arrest was taken from another incident in 2020.