A 14-year-old student has been apprehended for allegedly stealing cables valued at N300,000 from the Lekan Salami Sports Complex in Ibadan, Oyo State. Sulaiman Abubakar, a Junior Secondary School (JSS 2) student at Eleyele High School, was taken into custody by security operatives after the theft was discovered.
The Oyo State Commissioner for Youth and Sports, Wasilat Adegoke, announced the arrest during her visit to the stadium to evaluate damage caused by the incident. Adegoke urged the state sports council staff to be vigilant and emphasized that security at the stadium is a shared responsibility among all stakeholders. She also pledged to enhance security measures at the complex to thwart future thefts.
According to reports, Abubakar accessed the stadium during a training session of the Shooting Star Football Club, where he stayed overnight after security personnel locked the stadium entrances. During interrogation, he confessed to using a large stone to break pipes in order to reach and cut camera and lighting cables with the intention of selling them.
The incident had a dramatic turn when Abubakar's mother, a resident of the Sabo area in Ibadan, fainted upon seeing her son in handcuffs but was later revived by stadium staff. She indicated that she had recently punished Sulaiman for a prior offense.
The case has now been transferred from the Stadium Police Post to the Mokola Police Station for further investigation.