The News Chronicle reporter and Secrets Reporters journalist, Stanley Ugagbe, has been abducted from his residence in the Jikwoyi area of Abuja, with the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) suggesting the incident may be connected to a recent corruption investigation published by the online platform.
According to a report by Press Attack Tracker, an initiative of the Centre for Journalism Innovation and Development (CJID), Ugagbe was seized around 6:30 p.m. on Wednesday by unidentified armed men.
The publisher of Secrets Reporters, Tega Oghenedoro, popularly known as Fejiro Oliver, said neighbours saw four men in plain clothes arrive in an unmarked Mitsubishi Pajero SUV before forcing the journalist away. One of the men reportedly carried an assault rifle, while another was dressed in shorts.
The news platform initially suspected the involvement of the State Security Service (SSS). However, after making inquiries, the agency reportedly denied arresting or detaining Ugagbe.
Attention later shifted to the Nigeria Police Force after a confidential source alleged that operatives attached to the Police Violent Crimes Response Unit (VCRU) in Guzape carried out the abduction. The claim, however, could not be independently verified.
Lawyers representing Secrets Reporters visited the Guzape police division on Thursday to ascertain whether the journalist was being held there, but police denied having him in custody.
The conflicting accounts and the inability to verify the claims have left Ugagbe’s family and colleagues uncertain about his whereabouts. As of the time of reporting, his location remained unknown.
CPJ Raises Alarm, Links Disappearance to CBN Investigation
The Committee to Protect Journalists on Friday expressed concern that Ugagbe’s disappearance could be linked to a recent Secrets Reporters investigation alleging corruption involving a Deputy Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).
The report, published on June 16 under the headline, “CBN Deputy Governor Emem Nnana Usoro Hides N1.4 Billion California Luxury Condo in Asset Declaration Scandal (Part 1),” alleged that the senior CBN official concealed ownership of a luxury property in the United States. The article, however, was published without a byline.
In its statement, CPJ quoted Oghenedoro and the outlet’s senior reporter, Paul Utebor, as saying neighbours saw Ugagbe enter his apartment before two armed men followed him inside and later emerged with the journalist, his laptop and mobile phones.
As he was being taken away, Ugagbe reportedly shouted, “Call my office.”
CPJ said the publisher and editors believe the abduction is directly connected to the investigation, identifying Ugagbe as the lead reporter on the story.
The organisation further disclosed that before publication, Ugagbe had contacted the CBN official named in the report for comment and later received a call from a man identified only as “Ibrahim,” who denied the allegations and urged him not to publish the story.
CPJ also cited police sources as claiming Ugagbe had been taken to the former Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS) facility in Guzape. However, searches conducted at the facility, police stations in Jikwoyi, the Force Headquarters and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Police Command failed to establish his whereabouts.
FCT Police Command spokesperson, Josephine Adeh, told CPJ that police were investigating the disappearance but had found no record indicating Ugagbe was in police custody.
The press freedom organisation said repeated calls and messages to Force spokesperson Anietie Okokon went unanswered.
It also said it received no response from the Director-General of the SSS, Oluwatosin Ajayi, the CBN official named in the investigation, or publicly listed CBN contact numbers.
CPJ’s Africa Director, Angela Quintal, called on Nigerian authorities to immediately disclose Ugagbe’s whereabouts, grant him access to his family and legal representatives if he is being detained, or release him without delay if there is no lawful basis for his detention.
