Bandit kingpin. Source: YouTube/BBC Africa Eye
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Claim: An X user claims that terrorists confirmed they received N60 million from the Nigerian government, despite the government denying paying ransom.
Verdict: Misleading. DUBAWA found that the viral claim misrepresents an old BBC documentary clip from 2022.
Full Text
A claim circulating on X and Facebook (archived here) alleges that terrorists confirmed receiving N60 million from the Nigerian government, contradicting the Federal Government’s denial of paying ransom to Boko Haram or other armed groups.
The claim gained traction after a popular X user, OurFaveOnlineDoc (@OurFavOnlineDoc), reacted to a news report in which the FG denied paying ransom to secure the release of abducted victims.
“We were paid 60 million naira by the government to release the girls; we used the money to buy rifles,” the X user quoted the terrorist.
The claim appears to trail a recent Agence France-Presse (AFP) investigative report alleging that billions of naira were paid as ransom to free up to 230 children and staff abducted from a Catholic school in Niger State.
As the discussion intensified, similar claims were shared on Facebook (here and here), and some blogs and newspapers amplified the allegation.
As of Friday, Feb. 27, 2026, the post had 5,417 reposts, 214 quotes, and 9,815 likes.
This led to a comment by Nwoji AlgoTrader (@H2Wealth365), asserting, “While the media is claiming billions of Naira were paid to the terrorists, the actual kidnappers claim that they were paid N60 million.”
Another user, Onyekachukwu Aduaka (@AduakaO1999), echoed this sentiment that the government is “indirectly sponsoring their activities.”
Given the gravity of the claim, DUBAWA conducted an investigation.
Verification
DUBAWA conducted a Google Reverse Image Search using frames extracted from the viral video referenced in the X post.
The search revealed that the footage originated from a British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) Africa Eye documentary titled “The Bandit Warlords of Zamfara.”
The documentary was officially released on July 25, 2022, and provides an in-depth look into the banditry crisis in northwest Nigeria. It includes interviews with bandit leaders, negotiators, victims, and local officials.
DUBAWA identified the exact part of the video being shared. The circulating clip appears at 38 minutes, five seconds into the 50-minute documentary.
The specific clip circulating online shows a masked man wearing a blue robe discussing ransom negotiations and the economics of kidnapping.
Further keyword searches and review of the documentary reveal that the N60 million ransom mentioned in the clip relates to the 2021 Jangebe Government Girls Secondary School abduction in Zamfara State, which occurred during the administration of former president Muhammadu Buhari.
In the BBC documentary, the masked bandit discusses ransom negotiations in Zamfara and references N60 million in connection with the past abductions.
At the time of the 2021 Jangebe abduction, the then Zamfara State governor denied that ransom was paid.
Conclusion
The video interview is neither recent nor related to the Niger kidnapping case referenced in the AFP exposé. Therefore, the claim is misleading.
