The Zone One Police Headquarters in Kano has arrested a 32-year-old man, Richard Peter, for allegedly defrauding students of Bayero University, Kano, through fake ushering job offers.
The police also recovered 29 mobile phones and other valuables allegedly stolen from the victims during the operation.
The spokesman for the zone, DSP Abdullahi Hussaini, disclosed this in a statement issued on Tuesday, saying the suspect was apprehended following a petition submitted to the office of the Assistant Inspector-General of Police by a group of students led by Clementina Paul.
According to the statement, the students accused the suspect of luring them with promises of ushering jobs before allegedly stealing their belongings.
Preliminary investigation revealed that the suspect, through an associate identified as Faith Dauda, allegedly invited 38 female students to Mairabo Hotel in the Sabon Gari area of Kano on May 10, 2026.
The police said the students were instructed to change into work outfits and leave behind their phones and personal items on the claim that mobile phones were not permitted at the supposed event venue.
The statement added that the suspect later took the victims to the hotel restaurant, ordered meals worth N6,000 for each of them and subsequently disappeared without settling the bill.
“After eating and waiting for several hours, the victims returned to the room and discovered that their phones and other items had been stolen,” the police said.
Hussaini explained that one of the stolen phones was later tracked to Kano Line Motor Park through intelligence gathering and technical support. Operatives reportedly moved to the location but discovered that the suspect had already boarded a vehicle heading to Lagos.
He was eventually intercepted and arrested in Zaria, Kaduna State, while attempting to flee.
“Twenty-nine phones and other items belonging to the victims were recovered.
The suspect is currently in custody at the Zonal Criminal Investigation Department and will be charged in court upon completion of investigation,” the statement added.
The Assistant Inspector-General of Police in charge of Zone One, Garba Ahmed, commended the operatives for the swift arrest and urged members of the public to verify job offers before engaging with strangers.