Journalist petitions police over N570,000 Lagos tenancy dispute
September 10, 2026 2:39 am
A Chief Correspondent with the Nigerian Tribune, Francis Iwuchukwu, has petitioned the Nigeria Police Force over an alleged tenancy dispute involving an estate agent in Adamo, Ikorodu, Lagos State, demanding a refund of N570,000 paid to secure an apartment.
Iwuchukwu, in a statement made at the Imota and Araro Police Divisions on June 8, 2026, alleged that he paid the money to an estate agent, Bolaji Ojo, who operates as Ojo’s Properties (Land and Property Consultancy), for a room-and-parlor self-contained apartment.
The journalist said discussions with Ojo began by phone on April 1, 2026, before they met physically on April 3, when he made the payment.
He said he transferred N570,000 from his First Bank account at about 1.01pm on April 3 to an Access Bank account belonging to Temitope Adebayo, which the agent provided for the transaction.
Iwuchukwu said he later discovered that the account belonged to Ojo’s wife.
According to him, the payment covered N400,000 rent, N50,000 agreement fee, N50,000 commission, N50,000 damages deposit, N15,000 security/CDA fee and N5,000 cleaner’s fee.
He alleged that before payment, Ojo informed him that the electrical wiring in the apartment was incomplete but assured him the work would be completed before the end of April.
The agent also allegedly told him that each apartment had been allocated a prepaid electricity meter, although the meter for his apartment was yet to be installed.
Iwuchukwu said that after making the payment, he reached an oral agreement with Ojo to take possession of the apartment and begin preparatory work ahead of his relocation.
He added that he subsequently paid another N5,000 consultancy fee into the agent’s OPay account on April 23.
According to the journalist, Ojo later gave him a tenancy agreement form, which he completed, signed and returned.
He said the agent accompanied him to the property on April 27, handed over the keys to the apartment and the main gate, and assured him that the tenancy agreement would be sent to the property owner for approval and that a rent receipt would be issued.
Iwuchukwu said he moved his belongings into the apartment on May 6 after notifying the agent and began making improvements to the property.
He added that he installed a solar power system on May 7, pending the installation of the prepaid electricity meter.
However, he said the arrangement broke down on May 24 when he returned to the property and allegedly discovered that the gate leading to his apartment had been secured with a large padlock.
Iwuchukwu noted that the development forced him to suspend further work on the apartment.
He alleged that when he contacted Ojo, the agent initially claimed ignorance of the padlock but later attributed the action to a disagreement over electricity supply.
Following the development, Iwuchukwu demanded a refund of the money paid to secure the apartment, including other payments made in connection with the tenancy.
He said Ojo subsequently signed an undertaking at the Imota Police Station on June 8 to refund the disputed sum but allegedly failed to honour the undertaking.
Iwuchukwu further alleged that the agent made a similar promise at the Araro Police Station on the same day but had yet to fulfil it.
As of the time of filing this report, Ojo’s whereabouts were said to be unknown, while the journalist alleged that the estate agent had stopped responding to calls from the police.
Onozure is a correspondent of The PUNCH on the judiciary beat. She has over a decade experience covering criminal and civil matters from the magistrate to the appellate courts. She’s a graduate of Political Science
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