Nigeria is witnessing a worrying resurgence of jungle justice, with a growing number of citizens being attacked, tortured or killed by mobs over allegations of criminality before such claims are subjected to proper investigation or judicial determination.
The incidents have been reported in different parts of the country, with accusations ranging from theft and fraud to witchcraft, wrongful transactions and blasphemy. In several cases, suspects have been subjected to torture, dehumanization and public humiliation, while some have lost their lives without having the opportunity to establish their innocence.
The trend has also raised concerns over the growing willingness of some members of the public to bypass law enforcement agencies and the courts, taking punishment into their own hands based solely on allegations or rumours.
Among the most disturbing cases are those involving alleged blasphemy, where accusations that have not been properly investigated have sometimes resulted in violent attacks and death.
The victims of such attacks are not always guilty of the allegations made against them. In some instances, rumours or false alarms have been enough to trigger mob action before the facts surrounding an incident are established.
Beyond the loss of lives, the practice has exposed victims to severe physical and emotional trauma. Some of the attacks have also been recorded and circulated online, turning the humiliation and abuse of victims into social media content and further damaging their reputations.
According to Amnesty International, at least 363 cases of mob violence have been recorded across Nigeria in the last decade, with nearly 100 people killed.
A national tragedy occurred on March 28, 2025 when about 16 northern hunters traveling from Port Harcourt, Rivers State, to Kano State to celebrate Sallah, Eid al-Fitr were murdered in suspicion that they were terrorists.
The pattern has continued into 2026, with several incidents involving people accused of stealing, kidnapping or committing other offences.
In some of the disturbing video clips that emerged, suspects were allegedly tortured, humiliated and forced to sing and dance for members of the mob, with some of the footage subsequently circulated on social media.
Oyo mob attack
A mob attack in Ibadan, Oyo State, later developed into a wider security crisis after an alleged robbery attempt triggered violent reprisal attacks.
On July 9, the Oyo State Police arrested at least four suspects in the Strabag area of Ojoo, Ibadan, following a mob action that escalated into a violent public disturbance.
The crisis began on 7 July, after four young men allegedly attempted to rob a Point of Sale, POS operator of his mobile phone while pretending to purchase mobile data.
One of the suspects, identified as Abeeb Olajide, was apprehended by an angry mob while the other three escaped.
Police said the suspect was brutally assaulted before officers rescued him and rushed him to a medical facility where he later died.
The Police Command said the incident sparked tension in the community as aggrieved groups allegedly mobilised for reprisal attacks, leading to a breakdown of law and order in parts of the Strabag axis with at least two others confirmed dead.
Motorcycle theft allegation ends in lynching
In the Federal Capital Territory, an allegation of motorcycle theft ended with the death of a suspected thief after a mob caught up with him.
On March 19, a suspected motorcycle thief, identified as Haruna Yahuza also known as “Gwaska” was lynched by a mob along the Dafara-Gaube road in the Kuje Area Council of the FCT.
Eyewitnesses said the incident occurred after the suspect allegedly snatched a motorcycle near the community and attempted to escape with it.
The suspect and an accomplice had blocked the road and stabbed a cyclist before fleeing with the stolen bike. However, the attack immediately drew the attention of a growing mob.
According to reports, the bike owner, who was left in a pool of his blood, was able to identify the primary suspect, who was given a hot chase and was later killed by the mob.
Kaduna records deaths over mistaken identity
Cases involving false accusations have also emerged in Kaduna State, where victims were reportedly attacked after being mistaken for criminals.
On 21 June, 2026, one Ummulkhair Muhammad, an Islamic teacher, was lynched in Mararaban Jos, a community along the Kaduna-Zaria highway, after being falsely accused of attempting to kidnap children, an allegation Amnesty International described as a growing violence “becoming the norm nationwide.”
Before she was killed, Mrs Muhammad was reportedly taken to a police division in the community where a mob demanded that she be handed over to them.
The deceased’s husband, Aliyu Muhammad, in an interview with BBC Hausa, alleged that the Divisional Police Officer, DPO handed his wife to the mob who later killed her.
It was later gathered that the deceased, who was heading to a meeting in the area, missed her direction and was seeking help from residents when the mob attacked her.
In another incident, two travellers were reportedly killed after residents mistook them for kidnappers.
Similarly, two innocent travellers who were mistaken for kidnappers by a mob in Gidan Kalu Village, Birnin Yero, a few kilometres from Maraban Jos in Igabi Local Government Area of Kaduna State were killed.
The victims, identified as Muhammadu Sani and Aliyu Mohammed both from Umar Village in Igabi LGA, were travelling on a motorcycle to Tudun Wada, Zaria, on July 1 to visit their ailing uncle when they were attacked and killed by a mob.
According to the police, residents became suspicious after seeing the pair riding a new motorcycle and raised the alarm by shouting “thieves.”
UNIJOS graduate dies after alleged phone theft
The death of a University of Jos graduate further highlighted the consequences of mob attacks triggered by unverified allegations.
On 26 July, a Jos-based model and University of Jos graduate, Ibrahim Mbaya, popularly known as “Ibee” was killed in Jos, the Plateau State capital, after a mob beat him over an alleged phone theft.
Still and motion pictures of the assault recently circulated on all social media platforms.
According to the Plateau State Police Command, about five persons have been arrested for their various roles in the extrajudicial killing.
The Police Public Relations Officer of the command, Alfred Alabo, said other suspects were still at large.
Asked what was the update on those arrested and those still on the run, Alabo simply said “if there is any update, we will make it available via our Facebook page”.
False alarms put innocent Nigerians at risk
Several reported cases have also shown how quickly an allegation can turn into mob violence, even when the person accused has committed no offence.
Earlier this year, a woman was attacked by a mob at the International Market in Abakaliki, the Ebonyi State capital, following a false alarm.
The woman was accused of abducting three children and was subjected to severe assault by the mob.
However, preliminary investigations later revealed that the children are her neighbours.
For Abuja resident Mrs Alice Oche, a similar experience nearly ended differently after she was accused of making a fake bank transfer.
Mrs Alice Oche, who escaped a mob attack in July this year, recounted how she was nearly lynched after being accused of making a fake bank transfer.
She said, “I went to the Bwari market on July 18 and I was busy buying things.
“You know how crowded the market is, especially on market days. Only for someone to tap me on the back and start screaming and making allegations.
“I thought it was a prank. She claimed that I bought something about N31,000 from her and that I made a fake transfer. She was talking and shouting and before you knew what was happening, people started gathering.
“I tried to let this woman know that I was not the one. In fact, I had not gone to that market for a very long time so it was definitely not me. Again, I usually go with cash because not everybody accepts transfers, so that couldn’t have been me.
“While I was explaining, she was dragging me and calling me a thief. The bike people were already gathering so I became very scared. Some of them were already shouting ‘thief thief’.
“At that time, there was nothing I could do anymore. Thank God I just entered the market and I had about N50,000 in my bag. Out of fear I asked her how much the money was and she said N31,000. I had to give her that money and leave the market immediately.
“That was how God saved me. The question is, what if I had used the money I was having in my bag. What if there was nothing on me? Maybe I would have been lynched”.
Why mob justice persists
Public affairs analyst Mr Damion Uko linked the growing resort to jungle justice to failures within the criminal justice system, particularly corruption and the perception that suspects can escape accountability.
Mr Damion Uko, a public affairs analyst, attributed the ugly trend to systemic corruption, which he said allowed suspects to evade justice after allegedly bribing people in authority.
According to Damion, “nobody chooses jungle justice just because violence is a good thing, no. They do it out of frustration, fear and a belief that the system won’t deliver justice.
“Nigerians have lost confidence in both the security agencies and even the court.
“Imagine a criminal raped your daughter and then you report the case to the police, the rapist is arrested only for you to see him walking freely in the street the following month.
“I’m sure Nigerians have not forgotten the case of the 13-year-old girl, Ochanya Ogbanje who was allegedly raped by a lecturer and his son in Benue State until she died.
“The two suspects are walking freely in the society as we speak. Do you think Ochanya’s family is happy over it? The system failed them.
“When next they have a suspect, they will do the justice by themselves. That is what we are facing.
“Ochanya’s alleged rapists were allegedly freed because of one politician behind them. Imagine that! A young girl with a bright future. Her life was cut short and everybody just moved on.
“The matter resurfaced sometime last year, but what happened next? Those using their voice to call for justice may have again been compromised.”
He pointed out that until accountability improved in the country, the pressure to “do it ourselves” would stay high.
What Nigerian law says
The legal position, however, does not permit members of the public to punish suspects merely because they believe an offence has been committed.
On the legal implications of jungle justice, activist lawyer, Nkereuwm Akpan, Esq., said the Nigerian Constitution only permits self-defence where a suspect was armed and posed an immediate threat to the lives of people around him.
According to him, “there is nothing in the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 (as amended), the Criminal Code, the Penal Code or any other Law for the time being in force allowing for jungle justice to be visited on persons apprehended by the public on the allegations of having committed a crime, even where such a person is caught in the act”.
He noted that what the law permitted “is for such suspected felons to be handed over immediately to the relevant law enforcement agencies for further investigation and possible prosecution.
“Now there exist in our laws the provisions relating to self defense when an assailant is armed with dangerous weapons and it is on those occasions that the law permits someone who is attacked to use such reasonable force and available means to defend his or herself.”
With mob attacks increasingly being linked to allegations that are sometimes unverified or entirely false, the incidents continue to raise fundamental questions about public trust in the justice system, protection of citizens and the responsibility of Nigerians to allow allegations of criminality to be determined through lawful investigation and judicial process.
