A 27-year-old man, Micheal Lateef, has been arraigned before a magistrates’ court in the Ikeja Magisterial District, Lagos, accused of stealing two goats worth ₦300,000 with the alleged intention of selling them on to restaurants for pepper soup.
The defendant appeared before Magistrate L.A. Owolabi on a single count of stealing, contrary to Section 280 and punishable under Section 287 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State, 2015.
The prosecutor, SP Josephine Ihkayere, told the court that the alleged offence was committed at Moshalashi Street, Kande, Ayobo, Lagos State.
The charge sheet, filed by SP Ajeigbe Yemisi, reads: “That you, Micheal Lateef, ‘M’, on the 5th day of September, 2026, at about 1100hrs, at Moshalashi Street, Kande, Ayobo, Lagos State, in the Ikeja Magisterial District, did steal two (2) goats valued at Three Hundred Thousand Naira (₦300,000.00) only, properties of one Isiaka Olowu, and thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 280 and punishable under Section 287 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State of Nigeria, 2015.”
According to the police, the goats belonged to Mr Isiaka Olowu, who had tethered them behind his house on Moshalashi Street. The complainant is said to have raised the alarm upon returning home to discover the animals had vanished.
Sources at the Command Tactical Squad said operatives led by Inspector Aworemi Olumide tracked the suspect to a restaurant in Kande, where he was allegedly negotiating to sell the two goats to a client for pepper soup and asun.
The pepper soup trade is said to be particularly lucrative in Ayobo and its surrounding areas, where a plate of goat meat pepper soup sells for between ₦3,500 and ₦5,000. Police believe the suspect allegedly stole the goats to cash in on the high demand from restaurants.
He was arrested and the goats, valued at ₦300,000, were recovered as exhibits.
When the charge was read to him in court, the defendant pleaded not guilty.
The prosecutor, SP Josephine Ihkayere, applied for a date for trial and urged the court to remand the defendant in custody pending trial.
In his ruling, Magistrate L.A. Owolabi granted the defendant bail, with a surety who must provide evidence of a means of livelihood and tax payment.
The magistrate ordered that the defendant be remanded at the Correctional Centre in Kirikiri Town pending the perfection of his bail conditions. The case was adjourned to a later date for mention.
Meanwhile, residents of Ayobo have complained about what they describe as a rising tide of goat theft in the area, alleging that stolen animals are routinely sold to local restaurants for pepper soup without customers’ knowledge.
One resident, who asked not to be named, said: “We can no longer tie goats outside. They will steal them and sell them to those pepper soup women at night.”
Police have advised livestock owners in Kande, Ayobo, Ipaja and Egbeda to secure their animals and to report any suspicious movement around them.
The two goats remain in police custody as exhibits.
The court will determine whether Mr Lateef did indeed steal the goats to supply the pepper soup trade, as alleged by the police. The defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty, and the allegation against him is yet to be established in court.
