Lagos Arrests 86 Street Beggars in Agege, Ketu Clampdown

The Lagos State Government has arrested no fewer than 86 street beggars during an enforcement operation in the Agege and Ketu areas of Lagos as authorities intensify efforts to curb street begging and restore order in public spaces.

According to information monitored by Global Mirror News, the operation also led to the arrest of 12 suspected miscreants during multiple environmental monitoring and enforcement patrols across the affected communities.

The Commissioner for the Lagos State Ministry of the Environment and Water Resources, Tokunbo Wahab, disclosed the development in a post on his X (formerly Twitter) account on Tuesday.

Wahab explained that the enforcement team initially apprehended 25 street beggars in Agege before extending the operation to Ketu, where more arrests were made.

“During our ongoing monitoring and enforcement patrol today, 25 beggars were arrested in Agege as part of efforts to address street begging and restore order in public spaces,” Wahab said.

He added that as of midday Tuesday, a total of 86 beggars, including nine children, had been taken into custody alongside 12 suspected miscreants across the two locations.

Global Mirror News gathered that the individuals arrested would undergo profiling before being transferred to appropriate Government Agencies for further action in line with existing laws and social welfare intervention programmes.

Wahab noted that the enforcement drive forms part of the state Government’s broader campaign to discourage street begging, protect vulnerable persons, and maintain environmental sanity across Lagos.

“We will continue these operations to discourage street begging, protect vulnerable persons and maintain order across Lagos,” the commissioner said.

The development comes amid intensified enforcement actions by the Lagos State Government against street begging and other environmental violations across the state since the beginning of 2026.

In a related operation earlier this week, authorities also apprehended a suspect accused of illegally dumping refuse on a public road during an early morning patrol by environmental enforcement officers.