Hundreds of gang members, primarily teens, getting away authorities in two Nigerian states under a coronavirus lockdown hoaxed citizens into believing that coordinated heist attacks were underway.
Authorities state the gangsters accomplished their objective of creating panic.
Locals set up makeshift checkpoints with burning tyres in border neighborhoods between Lagos and Ogun states after forming vigilante groups to safeguard themselves from the imaginary armed burglars.
For days, groups of anxious citizens – young and old, and mainly male – kept night vigils on their streets, armed with machetes, bottles and other household items.
They were braced for an attack that never came.
There were rumours that a group of approximately 200 armed burglars were on the rampage.
However the police have actually told the BBC that it was a prevalent hoax by gangsters to produce panic prior to assaulting citizens and that people had unintentionally helped them by posting messages on social media.
However, the authorities firmly insist that no-one was in fact assaulted.
Image copyright
Other
Police state messages like this were utilized to frighten the general public.
However there was no proof of armed break-in attacks in the areas, according to the authorities.
The first wave of reports stated there were attacks around the Agbado, Sango and Ijoko areas of Ogun state that borders Lagos.
On social media some locals claimed they had actually heard gunshots and others stated they had seen individuals breaking into homes and in some cases incapacitating residents.
This video revealed citizens of a community honing their machetes and “getting ready for battle”.