Sources said ASP Ekpenyong immediately began what they described as a “game plan” by accusing Oluwasanmi of two issues.
Fresh details have emerged suggesting that operatives of the State Intelligence Department (SID) of the Lagos State Police Command worked in concert with officials of Alpha-Beta Consulting Limited to intimidate, blackmail, and criminalise Comrade Segun Oluwasanmi, a former employee and whistleblower.
Oluwasanmi, who has consistently raised allegations of corruption and tax evasion against Alpha-Beta Consulting Limited, was previously arrested and unlawfully detained by the Nigeria Police Force, SaharaReporters had reported.
The alleged collaboration between the police and the firm is believed to be part of a coordinated effort to silence him and suppress his continued demands for accountability over what he describes as large-scale corruption within the company.
Credible sources familiar with the matter told SaharaReporters on Tuesday evening that the entire operation was carefully orchestrated to force Oluwasanmi into abandoning petitions and public disclosures against Alpha-Beta, a private tax consultancy firm widely reported to have links to President Bola Tinubu.
According to the sources, the latest attempt to rope in Oluwasanmi began on Monday, January 12, 2026, when one ASP Austin Ekpenyong of the SID called him and claimed that an Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP) wanted to see both Oluwasanmi and Alpha-Beta management on Wednesday, January 14, 2026.
Ekpenyong reportedly followed up the call with a WhatsApp message and, during a subsequent conversation, hinted that Oluwasanmi did not need to come with a lawyer or documents, a suggestion sources now believe was intended to disarm him.
Unaware of the alleged trap, Oluwasanmi arrived at the SID office at the Lagos Police Command headquarters, Ikeja, at about 9 am on January 14 in the company with a fellow activist. There, he met five Alpha-Beta staff members already waiting.
He was asked to remain outside and only called in around midday, notably while an Alpha-Beta staff member looked on.
Sources said ASP Ekpenyong immediately began what they described as a “game plan” by accusing Oluwasanmi of two issues.
“First, that he was a ‘friend’ of a Facebook group called Lagos Concern, where SaharaReporters’ investigative stories critical of Alpha-Beta were frequently shared,” a source said.
“Second, that his personal Facebook page, ‘Prince Chigo,’ also had SaharaReporters’ publications posted on it.
“Oluwasanmi reportedly responded that SaharaReporters’ stories are public materials and that he neither authored nor knew who shared them. He further explained that the ‘Lagos Concern’ group had over 120 members and that Facebook’s algorithm often suggests friends and groups based on patterns.”
However, Ekpenyong allegedly insisted on tying him to the group’s activities.
The officer reportedly claimed that one Oluleke Okewale, who was also detained, had once advertised shoes on the Lagos Concern group and concluded that only administrators could advertise goods, thereby alleging that Okewale must be the group’s creator.
Oluwasanmi rejected the claim, describing the reasoning as flawed and stating that it was the first time he had heard such an assertion. He also reiterated how Facebook’s algorithms and group functions actually operate.
Sources said the IPO then shifted focus to specific allegations earlier reported by SaharaReporters, including claims of bribery involving Alpha-Beta’s Head of Human Capital Management, Mrs. Anjola Ige-Amusan, and began attempting to “justify” her actions.
“He was clearly cooking up an offence to nail Segun (Oluwasanmi),” a source said.
Oluwasanmi was reportedly not allowed to freely write a statement. Instead, he was compelled to write answers only to Ekpenyong’s questions, which sources described as “teleguided” to extract incriminating responses.
This marked the second time Oluwasanmi was being forced into such a process. On November 3, 2025, the same ASP Ekpenyong had reportedly earlier given him a clean bill of health, telling an ACP, in the presence of members of the Committee for the Defence of Human Rights (CDHR), that Oluwasanmi knew nothing about the case under investigation.
Despite this, Ekpenyong allegedly kept referring to Segun’s post when confronting Oluwasanmi about SaharaReporters’ stories.
Oluwasanmi reportedly corrected him repeatedly: “SaharaReporters’ post,” “newspaper post.”
When Ekpenyong argued that SaharaReporters mentioned Oluwasanmi’s name, he replied that the reference came from petitions written by CDHR, in which he was the complainant, and that police could reach out directly to the media house to ascertain its sources.
Detention Over ‘Unclear Offence’
Sources said Ekpenyong later informed Oluwasanmi that he was being detained and would be taken to court on Thursday, January 15, 2026, for what he described as an “unclear offence.”
Oluwasanmi demanded to see ACP Jaiyeoba Idowu Joseph, but the IPO refused.
The following day, Ekpenyong allegedly showed him a phone displaying another SaharaReporters story that had appeared on the Lagos Concern group and demanded to know how the newspaper obtained information from discussions held inside SID, even though Oluwasanmi and others had been separated from their phones.
By around 7 pm on Thursday, January 15, Ekpenyong reportedly ordered Oluwasanmi to unlock his phone. He refused.
He was again asked to write another statement, the third but declined, insisting the process was designed to “work towards an answer.”
An officer identified as Femi threatened to beat him for refusing.
Oluwasanmi reportedly warned that such an action would violate Section 37 of the Police Act 2020.
Sources said Ekpenyong stormed out angrily, returned, and threatened to obtain a court order compelling phone access and a remand order to detain Oluwasanmi indefinitely.
Detained For 42 Hours, Then Taken To Court
On Friday, January 16, 2026, after spending about 42 hours in custody, Oluwasanmi and another suspect were taken to court around midday.
The charge sheet accused Oluwasanmi of posting on a Facebook page called Lagos Concern in a manner “provoking breach of public peace,” contrary to Section 412 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State 2015 and posting on “Prince Chigo,” allegedly violating Section 413(2).
Sources noted that the cited sections relate to conspiracy in trade disputes and have no bearing on sharing news reports.
Earlier Clean Bill Of Health Ignored
SaharaReporters gathered that Oluwasanmi had already been cleared on the same allegations on November 3, 2025 by ASP Ekpenyong.
Moreover, Alpha-Beta’s petition, dated June 25, 2025, was against “Concerned Staff” who allegedly sent three anonymous emails on May 19, 25 and 30, 2025, complaining of stagnation, lack of promotion, favouritism and selective promotion, while copying President Bola Tinubu, Lagos Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, Finance Minister Wale Edun, staff members and some politicians.
Those emails were written in May 2025. Oluwasanmi left Alpha-Beta in January 2025.
In the same petition, Alpha-Beta admitted that forensic investigation had already identified a staff member allegedly behind the emails. This means the author was supposedly known.