On a fateful Monday evening after a hectic day at work, a private company employee, Kazeem Ayinde boarded a commercial vehicle en route Iyana-Ipaja from CMS loading garage. Fare was N2,000. He paid and immediately activated his air pod for cool classical music to take him through the journey. He was also surfing the internet.
As the vehicle was approaching the busy Third Mainland Bridge, a co-passenger sitting by the window side next to Ayinde brought out three sachet water (known more popularly as pure water) saying he had earlier bought them to quench his thirst.
He offered Ayinde one and he thankfully accepted, tore it open and gulped down hastily. Less than five minutes after drinking, Ayinde dozed off and didn’t even realised when the vehicle made it’s final stop at Iyana-Ipaja. It took the combined efforts of the bus driver and conductor to wake him to life several minutes after other passengers had alighted. However, his phone, wallet, air pod were all gone.
“I was dumbfounded, thinking the driver and conductor had played a fast one on me. However, they asked if I could recollect anything before I slept and that was when I remembered someone offered me water to drink.
They laughed and said the person must have spiked the water and carefully stolen the missing items while I slept. They warned me not to ever accept anything from strangers either in the vehicle or anywhere else. I felt terribly pained and the conductor had to return my fare out of pity so I can find my way home,” Ayinde narrated to NewsClick Nigeria.
These and many more are the unfolding tricks used by some unscrupulous elements to dispossess Lagosians of their hard earned money and belongings.
According to the 2026 Nigeria Risk Index, Lagos has recorded a complex security profile this year. While it remains one of the states with the lowest death rates related to violent conflict, it has the highest number of reported crime victims due to its sheer density.
Recent reports from the Lagos State Task Force highlight a crackdown on “street urchins” and “area boys” in hotspots like Ikeja, Lagos Island, and Lekki. In early January 2026 alone, over 56 suspects were apprehended in midnight operations aimed at restoring order to the mainland.
In an article written and published on Nigeria Housing Market (NHM) in January 2026, the author, Akinpelu Babatunde explained that population plays a major role in crime statistics of Lagos. According to him, with nearly 18 million residents living in the smallest landmass state in the country, the competition for resources is fierce.
While stealing in public places or vehicles is not entirely new, however, residents might yet to know the new methods used by the perpetrators and mostly likely fall victim.
While commuters are distracted by the shouts of conductors, passengers rushing to secure a seat, petty traders and other movement at bus stops, thugs and pickpockets are quietly watching and observing who their next target would be.
They explore various tactics and tricks to steal phones, wallets and other valuables. Some commuters are lucky enough to escape their tactics while others don’t get to.
The Keke Trampoline trick
A Lagos resident, Miss Adeola Olatunji recently shared her experience with the NewsClick Nigeria team. According to Miss Olatunji, her experience was in a tricycle popularly known as “Keke” or “Maruwa” at Ayobo to Iyana Ipaja area of Lagos.
“I was on my way to the market to restock my goods in the early hours of a Thursday morning. I boarded a keke as usual and met a man sitting behind the driver.
“As we continued the journey, another man stopped the keke and wanted to get in. He wanted me to sit between the two men, but I refused because I didn’t feel comfortable sitting between two men. The driver tried to persuade me, but I stood my ground. Eventually, the man sat in the middle.
“As we moved further, the keke driver suddenly asked me to help him fold up his tarpaulin. As I tried to fold it, he kept pestering me to use both hands. While doing so, I remembered that I had a huge sum of money in my bag.
“I immediately grabbed my bag, but the man beside me had already dipped his hand inside it. I screamed, and the keke stopped. They then pushed me out,” she narrated.
Early morning thieves
For Adebayo Olumide, what should have been a routine early-morning journey to work turned into a terrifying encounter with suspected robbers along Agege Road in Lagos. It was around 5am, when the streets were still relatively quiet, and Olumide boarded a danfo to continue his journey. Like many Lagos commuters, he had chosen the early hour to beat the morning rush and arrive at work on time. But somewhere along Agege Road, the journey took an unexpected turn.
According to Olumide, the bus suddenly slowed down before some men approached and began demanding passengers’ valuables. “Everyone was confused. It was still very early and the road was dark in some places. Before we could understand what was happening, they started collecting our phones and money,” he recalled.
Olumide said he surrendered his phone and the ₦8,000 he had with him. “I was more afraid for my life than the things they took. At that moment, you are just thinking about your family and hoping they don’t hurt anybody,” he said.
The incident left him shaken for the rest of the day. According to him, despite having travelled the route regularly before, he became uncomfortable whenever he had to board a danfo before sunrise. “I used to leave home early because I wanted to avoid traffic. Now, I think twice before travelling that early,” he said.
For Olumide, the robbery was not simply about losing his phone and money. It robbed him of the confidence he once had in travelling before dawn. “I just want to be able to leave my house at 5am and get to work without being afraid,” he said.
Creating intentional chaos to steal
Mrs Ismaila Muji also shared his experience with the NewsClick Nigeria team, it happened in a mini bus popularly known as ”Korope” on the Ikeja-Oshodi road.
“I boarded a commercial bus at Ikeja Along, heading towards Oshodi. I sat close to the window, and my phone was inside my handbag, which I placed on my lap. The bus was crowded because of the traffic, and everyone was trying to adjust. A few minutes into the journey, a man sitting beside me started complaining that someone had stepped on his leg. He was making noise and trying to change his position. At the same time, another passenger behind me kept asking people to shift because he wanted more space. The whole situation became confusing, and my attention went to the people arguing. I noticed the man beside me leaning towards me, but I thought he was only trying to make space. I didn’t know he was already getting close to my bag. I only noticed my phone had disappeared after I got down at Oshodi and wanted to make a call. I searched my bag several times because I thought maybe I misplaced it. That was when I noticed that my bag zip had been opened. Everything happened so quickly. I didn’t feel anyone take the phone from my bag.
I believe the incident was planned, after thinking about it, I realised the argument and the movement around me may have been a distraction. It felt like one person was trying to take my attention while another person looked for an opportunity to steal,” she recalled.
Another Lagos resident, Miss Adenekan Busola Speaks on her experience along Maryland Bus Stop to Ojota, Lagos.
“I was coming back from work and boarded a bus at Maryland Bus Stop, heading towards Ojota. It was during the evening rush hour, so the bus was crowded and many people were trying to enter.”
“Shortly after the bus started moving, everyone was trying to adjust. Someone suddenly pushed me from behind, and another person quickly apologised. I didn’t think much about it because the bus was full and I assumed it was just normal movement.”
I was after the incident that she got clue that her phone was already gone. “After some minutes, I wanted to check my phone, so I opened my handbag. That was when I realised my phone had gone missing.”
“The painful part is that you cannot easily identify who did it because everybody looked like a normal passenger.”
“People need to be more careful, especially inside crowded buses. Keep your bags in front of you, avoid displaying your phone unnecessarily, and pay attention when someone suddenly creates confusion around you, she advised.”
For Mr Alabi his experience was on his way back to Lagos from Ogun state. He boarded a keke from Ojodu Berger to Omole estate.
“On getting back to Lagos, I kept an envelope containing money inside my pocket. I was travelling in a tricycle, popularly known as a keke, around Omole Estate when a man, who appeared to be in his 40s, seemed to notice the envelope.
“After a while, he shifted closer to where I was seated and suddenly leaned out of the keke, shouting someone’s name as though he was trying to greet an acquaintance. At the time, I did not realise that his actions were part of a plan to steal the envelope from my pocket.
“It was only when I got home that I discovered the money was missing. I searched everywhere for it but could not find it.
“That was how I lost my savings. I cried alone because I could not even explain to anyone at home how I had obtained the money in the first place,” he narrated.
For Aduragbemi, lder sister’s phone was stolen “Few years back, during the ASUU strike around 2015/2016, we were trying to enter the bus, on our way back from school, as people were pushing themselves, some guys like that were around. They were pushing my big sister, unknowingly to her, they removed her phone and passed it to themselves. “By the time she got inside the bus, she wanted to check for the money she would use to pay for her transport, but she couldn’t find her phone anymore. “Then someone said maybe he saw someone trying to dip their hand into her pocket to remove her phone. That was how she lost her phone.”
For Lagos residents and commuters, the incidents of theft in public vehicles serves as a reminder that every commuter must be careful and alert at all times.