Nigeria’s Phone Theft Epidemic: 25.35m Devices Stolen in One Year – Report

A staggering 25.35 million phone theft cases were recorded in Nigeria between May 2023 and April 2024, according to the National Bureau of Statistics’ Crime Experience and Security Perception Survey report.

The report, which analyzed crime incidents in the country, revealed that phone theft was the most common type of crime experienced by individuals, followed by consumer fraud and assault.

“Phone theft is the most common individual crime experienced with a prevalence rate of 13.8 per cent and estimated with 25 million cases in the reference period,” the report stated.

About 90 per cent of phone theft cases were reported to the police, but only 11.7 per cent of reported stolen phones were recovered within the period. The report also showed that most phone theft cases occurred either at home or in public places.

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The North-West region recorded the highest incidence of crime, with 14.4 million cases reported, followed by the North-Central region with 8.8 million incidents. In contrast, the South-East region reported the least crime, with 6.18 million incidents.

The report also questioned the effectiveness of Nigeria’s security agencies, particularly the police, in responding to emergencies. Only 33.1 per cent of Nigerians reported that security agencies responded to emergency calls within 30 minutes.