I killed my former student, collected N500,000 ransom from her parents – then blew it on betting – Ogun teacher

Ogun State police operatives have arrested a 30-year-old private school teacher and choir master, Nathaniel Baiyegun, for the alleged kidnapping and murder of his 16-year-old former student after collecting a ₦500,000 ransom from her family.

A 30-year-old private school teacher and church choir master, Nathaniel Baiyegun, has been arrested by operatives of the Anti-Kidnapping Section of the Ogun State Police Command following the abduction and tragic death of his 16-year-old former student. The unsuspecting teenager, who had failed English and Mathematics in her previous West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE), was lured by Baiyegun on April 8, 2026, under the guise of attending his Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) and WAEC coaching class in the Ogijo area of Ogun State. Instead of returning home, the girl was held hostage in an uncompleted building while a strange caller demanded a ₦3 million ransom from her family. Despite the anxious relatives bargaining and successfully paying ₦500,000, the teenager was never released, and her lifeless remains were subsequently discovered dumped in a local river.

Preliminary police investigations have painted a grim portrait of the educator, alleging that Baiyegun was involved in internet fraud and had previously used his mobile phone to solicit nude photographs from the victim. According to police sources, the suspect initially attempted to coerce the minor into a romantic relationship with his friend, identified simply as Sola, before orchestrating her abduction. While the community and the victim’s family grapple with the shock of an educator violating the public trust, police investigators are widening their dragnet to apprehend Sola and any other local collaborators who helped secure the uncompleted building where the deceased spent her final hours in captivity.

However, during a interrogation session at the state command, Baiyegun denied intentional murder, insisting that the entire criminal enterprise was a staged extortion scheme gone wrong. Explaining his version of the timeline, the physics and further mathematics teacher claimed that he bumped into the girl while filming Instagram content and invited her to his coaching camp, where his friend later made unsolicited sexual advances toward her. “She requested transport fare to go home, but I told her I did not have any money on me. That was why we planned a fake kidnap. The intention was to collect money from her family. She told me her father could not afford to pay any ransom but that she had an uncle who was very rich and could pay. I initiated the kidnap,” Baiyegun stated to detectives. Police authorities have dismissed his claims of an “accidental” killing, confirming that the suspect will face formal charges of kidnapping and culpable homicide in court as soon as standard investigations are concluded.

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