₦airaland Forum

Ikeja Computer Village, Nigeria’s largest technology and phone trading hub in Lagos State, has long been known as the heartbeat of the country’s gadget economy.

But behind the endless rows of phone stalls, flashing screens and booming sales pitches lies a growing wave of fear that traders, buyers and passersby say is fast becoming normalized.

DAILY POST investigations reveal that phone theft and scam activities within and around the Computer Village have reached alarming levels, with victims recounting how newly purchased phones disappear within minutes, sometimes without any physical struggle.

For many, the experience feels unreal.

Kunle Adebayo, a commercial bus driver who spoke to DAILY POST near the Computer Village said: “It was like a movie trick. My phone was in my pocket. I checked it two minutes later and it was gone. No push, no fight, nothing.

Till today, I don’t understand how it happened. Since then, I don’t like going into the main market anymore.”

Several passersby interviewed by DAILY POST described similar experiences, saying the thefts often happen in crowded walkways, narrow shop corridors and at points where buyers pause to negotiate prices.

“Once you enter here, you have to be extra careful. I hold my phone tight even when I’m just checking price. People say it’s like a charm, but I think these people are just very smart thieves. I am not a victim, and I never wished to be, because what people have said about this particular market is something else,” a university student, Blessing Eze said.

Beyond theft, DAILY POST found that phone scams, particularly involving swapping of fake devices, popularly referred to as “China phones,” are another major concern.

These phones, which are often packaged to resemble popular brands, are sold to unsuspecting buyers, many of whom only discover the deception after leaving the market.

“My friend bought an iPhone here, everything looked real. The box, the phone, the settings. Two days later, it stopped working automatically. When she returned, the seller had disappeared,” Sadiq Bello said.

Some victims say the scams occur in seconds, especially around roadside dealers and market entrances.

“They will agree on a price, show you one phone, but once you bring out money, they swap it. Before you know it, what you’re holding is a smaller phone. By the time you realise, the person is gone,” Chiamaka Okorie, a fashion designer in the market said.

DAILY POST observed clusters of individuals standing by roadside corners and market entrances, displaying fairly used phones to attract buyers looking for cheaper deals.

Traders within the market say these roadside sellers contribute significantly to scam cases.

Inside the market, legitimate phone dealers say they are also victims of the situation, as complaints from customers continue to rise.

“We get shouted at almost every day. Someone buys a phone, walks two shops away, and the phone is gone. They come back angry, accusing us, but we don’t know anything about it,” a popular Infinix phone dealer, Abubakar, CEO of ABK Phones, said.

Another dealer, Sola Adeyemi, said theft cases often happen immediately after sales.

It’s painful and annoying, most times embarrassing. A customer will buy a phone, step out to make a call, and that’s the end. They return crying. We can’t refund because we didn’t steal the phone,” he said.

Some dealers told DAILY POST that scammers also exploit their stalls, pretending to be buyers while watching customers who just completed transactions.

“They study movements. Once they see a new phone, they target the person,” one dealer said.

Several people interviewed admitted they had personally fallen victim to theft or scams in the past.

I laughed at others before it happened to me. One day, my own phone disappeared inside my bag. That was when I understood. I felt stupid. It made me question myself till today,” Angela from Egbeda said.

Speaking with DAILY POST, the Secretary of the Computer Village Traders Association, Mr Babatunde Akinwale, said the union was aware of the growing complaints and was taking steps to address them.

He said the union works with security operatives and task force members to identify fake phone sellers and criminal elements.

“We are not happy about what is happening. These acts damage the image of the entire market,” Akinwale said.

Anyone caught selling fake phones or engaging in theft is handed over to the appropriate authorities. We also warn traders to report suspicious activities immediately,” he added.

According to him, the challenge lies in non-registered individuals who operate outside the union’s control.

“Most of these roadside sellers are not our members. We are doing everything possible to sanitise the market,” Akinwale added.

DAILY POST recalls that the Lagos State Government, in September 2025, gave traders in Ikeja Computer Village an 18-month deadline to relocate to a new permanent site at Katangowa, in the Agbado/Oke-Odo Local Council Development Area.

The state government said the new site had been equipped with necessary infrastructure to ensure a more organised and secure trading environment.

Speaking during an engagement with traders, the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Physical Planning and Urban Development, Gbolahan Oki, said the relocation was critical to urban planning and safety.

“The government wants your cooperation to ensure the relocation comes to pass. The time is now. We have to make the project a reality. The relocation period is 18 months,” Oki said.

He added that Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu was committed to traders’ welfare.

“Katangowa has been designated as the permanent site for this market. It sits on 15 hectares of land, well-planned and strategically located near essential resources for your businesses,” Oki said.

He noted that the current Ikeja location was never designed as a trading hub.

“What we are offering at Katangowa is a structured market environment that supports growth while addressing environmental and urban planning concerns. We want to work with you and jointly plan this relocation,” he said.

LagosOrigin:
It's Lagos , everything and anything happens there .

A very dangerous place to live.

ProudlyLagos:
phone theft and scam have always been associated with computer village so I wonder why this is still news…..anyone new to the market should just avoid patronising touts and street vendors and buy from the shop and get a receipt to avoid story that touch

SixSeven:
If the young man went to Alaba market or Computer Village where they could probably steal his phone, that would be original content. He didn't need to visit places Nigerians think are places. I wrote on the other thread that Nigerians think when they go to shops abroad, they have traveled without realizing travel is about experience. If he took the train, that is experience but I give it to him using a danfo because that is authenticity. It's living like Lagosians. Many people have shown this to our governments but they don't get it. The yellow buses and taxis represent something important in the state but our officials always think that we must look like Dubai (as Ambode once said) or one foreign place instead of being ourselves. I once saw the old Oshodi artwork in a museum abroad.

You may be right about the Ghana sabotage but they still made me laugh when I saw the jollof they made

LagosOrigin:
It's Lagos , everything and anything happens there .

A very dangerous place to live.

greatness77:
it's like you didn't read the full write up
Shop owners said that sometimes a customer will come buy phone and go and after a few minutes the customer will come back crying that the new phone that he or she just bought now is gone and he also went further to say that they can't give him or her another phone since he is not the one that stole it
So with this statement everybody is a victim

LZAA:
People say it’s like a charm, but I think these people are just very smart thieves.
Gbam!!!
That being said i never liked C Village

neonly:
The way those guys dey rewrite phone storage and function is alarming
Alaba has join them too alaba use to be my best market to go but now OYO