How Lagos thugs demolished our N500m bakery — Baker

A Lagos-based baker, Fuller Cheng, whose bakery is located at 24 Olufemi Road, Surulere, has cried out for justice and restitution after suspected hoodlums allegedly invaded the premises and demolished the property.

Cheng told PUNCH Metro on Monday that staff members on duty during the invasion were attacked with weapons before the hoodlums pulled down the bungalow and destroyed newly purchased equipment funded through loans and seed capital.

When our correspondent visited the scene on Monday, various bakery machines lay buried under piles of rubble.

Speaking through tears, Cheng said the destroyed property and equipment were worth over N500m.

He said, “This is my bakery. We have prospects. When things were going well, somebody organised over 40 armed thugs. That day was bleak and terrifying for all of us.

“We had staff members on the morning shift slicing and bagging bread. They stormed the premises with machetes; others came with guns and shoved the security aside.

“They started beating my people and demolishing the building while my workers were still inside. It is the grace of God that we are not talking about homicide today—people could have died inside.”

He added that the attackers even looted the building’s gate after attempting, as he put it, “to beat us and build on top of our dead bodies.”

“I want the full course of the law to run. I need protection. I have lost property worth over N500m—brand-new rotary ovens, brand-new mixers, and more. I want restitution. I want justice.

“How could they vanish after doing all this? I want every one of them apprehended. Since the demolition, we have been unable to produce. We are bleeding money.

Most of the funds were seed capital, and I took loans to build this business. How am I supposed to pay them back? ”

Cheng’s lawyer, Chris Johnson, maintained that his client holds a valid tenancy that runs until 2028.

He explained that earlier in the year, an individual appeared with a lawyer claiming to be the new owner, even though the landlord had not communicated any change, and Cheng’s tenancy agreement remained in force.

According to him, the next development was a seven-day quit notice, followed by court processes to which they responded. However, while the matter was still pending in court, the thugs allegedly moved in to demolish the bakery and destroy the equipment.

He said, “This business employs no less than 15–20 staff. Their daily turnover runs into millions of naira. They invaded without lawful authority. The law protects the weak and the poor, yet they came here knowing fully well that the tenancy remains valid till 2028.

“They first served a quit notice, which we responded to, and the case is pending in court. In the middle of all this, they went behind the court and carried out this barbaric act. Thank God for the swift response of the Nigerian police, who came and arrested the masterminds.

“They were arrested at the scene, in the act. No Lagos State government official was present. The first thing the attackers did was remove the cameras to avoid being seen.”

However, speaking on behalf of the former landlord, a legal practitioner, Olawale Fakunle, told our correspondent via telephone on Tuesday that they were shocked by the demolition.

“The property has been sold to a new owner. Whatever happened regarding the premises, we are not involved, we were not aware, and we had no hand in it. We had already instituted an action in court before the incident.

“The individuals occupying the property were not the actual tenants of the previous landlord. The real tenant had sublet the premises without the landlord’s knowledge. It was when the landlord decided to sell that he discovered the illegal subletting.

“The new owner wanted immediate possession, so we held meetings with the real tenant, and they agreed the illegal occupants would vacate on a certain date. But they kept breaking their promises.

“It was in the midst of this that we heard someone had gone to demolish the place. The police are already investigating. It shocked us. We couldn’t have authorised something like this.”

Disputes over demolitions and land ownership remain a recurring issue in Lagos, often involving tenants, landlords, property buyers, and, at times, state authorities.

Contacted on Tuesday for an update on the case, the spokesperson for the Force Criminal Investigation Department, Amina Mayegun, could not be reached as her phone was unavailable.

Messages sent to her WhatsApp number had also not been replied to as of the time this report was filed.