IBADAN — A banker, Mr. Tunde Odebunmi, has petitioned Governor Seyi Makinde of Oyo State over what he described as the criminal activities of illegal tax collectors allegedly operating under the guise of local government officials in parts of Ibadan.
Odebunmi, in a petition made available to DAILY POST on Thursday, alleged that the syndicate has been extorting motorists along the Ife/Ibadan Expressway, particularly around Egbeda Local Government Area.
Narrating his ordeal, Odebunmi claimed he was harassed by the group on September 9, 2025, and forced to pay ₦20,000 into a private account before he was released.
According to him, the ordeal began after he briefly stopped on the highway to allow his younger sister relieve herself. He alleged that a taxi driver confronted him for parking, before a group of men emerged, one of whom forcefully took control of his car and drove him to an unknown destination.
“They claimed I committed an offence of illegal parking on a federal highway and demanded ₦35,000. When I insisted on making payment into the Egbeda Local Government account, they refused. In the end, they reduced the fee to ₦20,000 and compelled me to transfer the money into the account of a POS operator working with them, one Happiness Anyanwu, who uses Moniepoint,” Odebunmi stated.
He further alleged that other motorists were similarly extorted at the same spot, with one man paying as much as ₦80,000 into the same account.
Describing the group as “robbers disguised as a task force,” Odebunmi appealed to Governor Makinde to urgently intervene and dismantle the extortion ring.
“The good people of Nigeria should help us call these people to order. I call on my industrious Governor, Engineer Seyi Makinde, to act fast against this menace in Egbeda Local Government,” he pleaded.
The Oyo State Government is yet to issue an official response to the allegations as of press time.
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