An elder in a Catholic church, Lucky Omofumah, has been arrested by the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, Lagos State Command, for allegedly operating an illegal private security company, Divine Assurance Security, in the Ikeja area of the state.
Omofumah was arrested alongside one of his workers.
Our correspondent learnt that the suspect recruited 23 of his church members into the company and had been working for electronic stores and supermarkets in the Ikeja Underbridge area since April 2022 before he was arrested.
Speaking with our correspondent on Wednesday, Omofumah said he did not register his company because he could not afford the registration fee.
He said, “I haven’t registered the private security company with the NSCDC. I have been operating since April 2022. I collect N35,000 per security officer that I attach to clients and I pay my staff 70 per cent of the money.”
His worker, Ambrose John, a Taraba State indigene, said he had just resumed the work and was not aware that the company was operating illegally.
He said, “My brother is one of his followers in church. He works for the company and also helped me to join two weeks ago. He agreed to be paying me N25,000 monthly. I did not know that the company was not registered.”
The Head, Private Guards Company Department, NSCDC, Deputy Commandant Onyegbula Eze, said the arrest was made after investigations revealed that the company was operating illegally.
The NSCDC Commandant, Eweka Okoro, said the command was trailing operators of two other security companies, City Guards, and Henristo Security, which had been shut.
