Olufowoke Emmanuel: Operatives of the Rapid Response Squad (RSS), Lagos State Police Command, have arrested a 19-year-old National Diploma (ND) holder of the Yaba College of Technology (YABATECH), for plotting to blackmail MUSIC artiste, Salawa Abeni.

The suspect, Olufowoke Emmanuel, said to be a resident of Ogun State, was picked up by the decoy team of the RRS last Thursday, after three days of trailing.

Salawa Abeni recently went on social media to raise the alarm over plans to blackmail her with her nude photos.

She posted a WhatsApp conversation with the suspect and the purported old photos he planned to use for the blackmail, thereby blocking the negativity that might come with the leak.

The Commissioner of Police, Mr Hakeem Odumosu, was said to have in April 2020, directed the Commander, RRS, DCP Olatunji Disu, to fish out the blackmailer.

After the technical diagnosis of the complaint, the decoy team was said to have narrowed down on him.

The suspect, in his statement to the police, allegedly confessed to the crime, saying he wanted to extort money from the artiste.

The Electrical Engineering graduate, reportedly said he saw the nude pictures in a memory card he picked up on the floor in YABATECH in November 2019.

He added that after downloading the photographs on his phone, he got Abeni’s mobile number from her Instagram page.

“On 1st of April, 2020, I chatted her up and also called her after sending a few of the photos to her online.”

“My intention was to negotiate with her for a few bucks and for me to destroy the photographs,” he said.

“I thought everything was going on fine until the following day when I heard the news of the blackmail over the radio. “It was with my mother. She even cursed the blackmailer unknown to her that I was the one behind it.”

“I immediately sneaked out, destroyed the memory card, and threw my mobile phone and SIM card into a nearby wetland in Magboro.”

“Since then, I never mentioned it to anyone and called Madam Salawa Abeni about it again,” he said.