A POST circulating on Facebook claims that security forces in Oyo State have arrested a local pastor suspectedly acting as a key logistics supplier to the armed group responsible for the mass abduction of schoolchildren and teachers in the Orire Local Government Area.
The post, published by the Facebook page @Northern Nigeria Hub, claims that the cleric used his status to smuggle weapons, ammunition, drugs, and operational gear through security checkpoints undetected.
The post further notes that the report was read out during the “What’s Trending” on Arise TV’s Morning Show, anchored by Ojy Okpe.
As of June 25, 2026, the post has generated over 1,400 likes, 700 comments, and more than 600 shares.
READ: Old video from protests over Mohbad’s death misrepresented as demonstration over Oyo abductions
CLAIM
Oyo security forces arrest local pastor supplying logistics to bandits behind Orire school abductions.
FINDINGS
Findings by The FactCheckHub show that the claim is FALSE.
While the rumour gained traction after being read aloud on-air during Arise TV’s morning review of events trending on social media by presenter Ojy Okpe, findings showed that the video was stripped of its original context.
On May 15, 2026, gunmen attacked schools along the Ahoro-Esiele/Yawota axis of Oriire Local Government Area in Oyo State and abducted pupils and teachers. The incident sparked widespread panic and renewed concerns over rising insecurity in parts of the state.
Amid current efforts to rescue the victims, social media platforms have been flooded with unverified claims, recycled footage, and misleading narratives, many of which falsely claim to show either the attackers or security responses linked to the incident.
The FactCheckHub subjected key frames from the video of the alleged arrest from the live show to a reverse image search, which shows that the incident was an arrest of a pastor, with a monarch and his cousins, who was allegedly apprehended for aiding and abetting kidnapping.
In August 2020, Blueprint and TVC news reported that the Imo State Police Command paraded a traditional ruler, Eze Andrew Okwuegbunwa, alongside seven others for their alleged involvement in a kidnapping syndicate in the South-East state.
While a cleric named Caleb Agu was indeed arrested during that 2020 operation as the suspected spiritual father of the gang, the case has nothing to do with the current security situation in Oyo.
The FactCheckHub also contacted the spokesperson for the Oyo State Police Command, Olushola Olayinka, to confirm if any such arrest had taken place within the state. He debunked the report as “false, unsubstantiated with evidence, and frivolous.”
READ ALSO: How false claims, recycled videos clouded Oyo school abduction
The police command confirmed that no local cleric connected to the mass school abductions in Orire had been taken into custody.
VERDICT
The claim that Oyo State security forces have arrested a local pastor for supplying logistics to the armed group behind the Orire school abductions is FALSE. The video shows an incident that happened in Imo state in 2020.
Seasoned writer and literary curator, Zainab Abdulrasaq is a factchecker for The FactCheckHub in an effort to combat information disorder. She can be reached on IG @blackbookishgirl or zabdulrasaq@icirnigeria.org
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