Troops of the 65 Battalion of the Nigerian Army have arrested 24 foreign nationals during a raid on a suspected hideout in Epe Local Government Area of Lagos State.
The suspects were later handed over to the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS), Lagos State Command, for further investigation.
The Acting Deputy Director of Army Public Relations, 81 Division Nigerian Army, Lt. Col. Musa Yahaya, disclosed this in a statement on Thursday.
He said the operation was carried out alongside members of a local vigilante group following credible intelligence on the presence of undocumented foreign nationals in the area.
According to Yahaya, the troops raided a fenced compound in Imokun, along the Odo-Noforija/Poka axis of Epe, where they arrested 24 suspects comprising 15 males and nine females.
He said preliminary profiling showed that the suspects included 10 Cameroonians, six Togolese, three Ivorians, three citizens of the Republic of Benin, one Burkinabè and one Guinea-Bissau national.
“Preliminary investigations have commenced to determine the immigration status of the suspects, the purpose of their stay in Nigeria, and whether they are involved in any unlawful activities,” the statement said.
Yahaya added that the owner of the property where the suspects were arrested would also be identified and questioned.
He said the suspects were handed over to the NIS Lagos State Command on July 16, 2026, for further investigation, profiling and necessary administrative action in line with immigration laws.
The statement added that the General Officer Commanding, 81 Division, Major General Adebayo Babalola, commended the troops and directed them to sustain operations against criminal elements, illegal immigrants, and other security threats within the division’s area of responsibility.
