Lagos arrests 45 beggars, including children, in fresh enforcement sweep
Lagos arrests 45 beggars, including children, in fresh enforcement sweep
The Lagos State Government has arrested 45 suspected beggars, including several children, during coordinated enforcement operations across different parts of the state.
The development was disclosed by the Commissioner for Environment and Water Resources, Tokunbo Wahab, in a post shared on his official X handle on Wednesday.
According to Wahab, 22 individuals were apprehended during an operation carried out in the Oshodi and Agege areas, with those arrested comprising adults and teenagers engaged in street begging.
A separate exercise conducted in the CMS area of Lagos Island resulted in the arrest of 23 additional persons, including 14 adults and nine children.
“Earlier today, in a separate enforcement operation, our team apprehended 22 beggars at Oshodi and Agege, comprising adults and a few teenagers.
“Additionally, 14 adults and 9 children were apprehended at CMS,” Wahab stated.
The commissioner said the operations formed part of ongoing efforts by the state government to address street begging and other activities considered detrimental to public order and environmental sanitation.
He added that enforcement teams were simultaneously carrying out clearance operations in other locations, including Admiralty Way in Lekki and Addo Road in Ajah.
The latest arrests come amid an intensified crackdown on environmental and traffic-related offences across Lagos.
Earlier, Wahab disclosed that more than 10,000 offenders had been arrested during various enforcement exercises conducted across the state within the past year.
According to figures released by the commissioner, 10,634 individuals were apprehended for offences ranging from illegal highway crossing, street trading and environmental violations to cart-pushing and waste management infractions.
Of the total, 5,715 persons were arrested for crossing highways unlawfully, while 3,886 others were apprehended for street trading and related environmental offences.
The state government also recorded 102 arrests for open defecation and 931 others linked to waste management violations.
Lagos authorities have maintained that the ongoing enforcement campaign is aimed at improving public safety, sanitation and environmental compliance across the state.
