A dark cloud looms once again over Abeokuta, the capital of Ogun State, where students and young residents say they are living in fear—not of cultists or robbers—but of a group allegedly tasked with protecting them.
In a chilling echo of Nigeria’s #EndSARS era, the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) has raised a clarion call against a police unit known as the Dragon Squad, accusing it of brutality, extortion, and illegal detention. The students are threatening mass protests if what they describe as “systematic terror” by the squad is not brought to a halt.
According to the NANS President, Ladoja Olushola, the squad—led by a former SARS operative, DSP Akeem Adeyemi—is accused of turning parts of Abeokuta, especially Ita Oshin and Oke Ata, into a “fear zone” where young people are randomly picked up, harassed, and extorted under the guise of hunting internet fraudsters, commonly referred to as “Yahoo Boys.”
“No victim comes out of their cell without trauma. There are tales of beatings, illegal detentions lasting weeks, and forced payments as high as ₦1.5 million,” Olushola said in a statement issued Monday.
The Dragon Squad, which allegedly operates from an office tucked inside the upscale Laderin Estate, has been described as an unofficial extension of the disbanded SARS unit, whose brutal tactics ignited nationwide protests in 2020. While SARS may be gone on paper, students say its spirit lives on in Dragon Squad’s unchecked operations.
According to NANS, multiple students of tertiary institutions in the state have been targeted. Phones are seized, hostels raided, and parents coerced into paying “bail money” to secure the release of their children—none of whom are ever charged to court.
“They barge into people’s homes. They accuse without evidence. And if you dare ask questions, you are either slapped or labelled a criminal,” recounted a 200-level student of the Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta (FUNAAB), who asked to remain anonymous for fear of reprisal.
Worse still, the squad is accused of moonlighting as enforcers for land grabbers. Residents of Ita Oshin and Oke Ata say uniformed officers from the unit often accompany thugs to violently claim lands amid ongoing disputes, making it nearly impossible for victims to seek justice.
The students are not keeping quiet. NANS is demanding immediate intervention from Inspector-General of Police Kayode Egbetokun, whose silence, they say, is unsettling—especially since Ogun is the IGP’s home state.
They’re also calling for an inquiry into the actions of AIG Zone 2 Lagos, said to have sanctioned the creation of the unit, and for the disbandment of the Dragon Squad entirely.
“We are not against fighting cybercrime, but it must be done within the bounds of the law. Our students are not ATM machines for rogue officers,” Olushola said.
If the police authorities fail to act, NANS has vowed to stage a peaceful yet massive protest this Wednesday at the office of the AIG, Zone 2, Onikan, Lagos. The student body says it will no longer fold its arms while its members are hunted like criminals on their own campuses.
“We fought SARS and won. We won’t hesitate to rise again,” Olushola added.
Social media is already buzzing with testimonies and warnings. Hashtags like #AbeokutaNotSafe and #EndDragonSquad are gaining traction, with many Nigerians shocked that such abuses are continuing almost five years after the #EndSARS movement forced global attention on police brutality in the country.
Civic groups and human rights lawyers are beginning to take notice. Falana & Falana Chambers have reportedly been contacted by concerned parents, and local NGOs are calling for a human rights audit of police activities in Ogun.
As Nigeria continues to grapple with reforming its policing system, the cries from Abeokuta serve as a stark reminder: the scars of police brutality have yet to heal, and the fight for justice—especially for young Nigerians—is far from over.
“We are students, not suspects.”
That is the message.
And this time, they’re determined to make it loud enough for the whole world to hear.