Were Railway Coaches Recently Stolen From a Train Station in Nigeria?
There is a circulating video and accompanying claim stating that trains were recently stolen from a train station in Nigeria. On March 3, 2025, an X user @withAlvin_, made a post which contained a video of a news report of the incident and the X users’ caption: “Bro I can’t believe Nigerians anymore. How do you steal trains. Steal 6 trains. How? 😂 6 Nigerian men were arrested earlier today for stealing Nigerian trains from the railway. 👀”
As of the time this report was published, the post had about 12,000 views, 23 comments and replies, 60 retweets and quotes, over 167 likes and 42 bookmarks. A thorough check revealed that similar claims were posted recently here, here and here.
VERIFICATION
A Google reverse image search of a screenshot from the video revealed that the video is not recent. It was posted here, and here, on October 15, 2023, and here, on October 14, 2023.
In October 2023, reports and videos circulated on social media alleging the theft of Nigerian Railway Corporation, NRC, train coaches from the Maiduguri Railway Terminus in Borno State. These claims were based on information that the Borno State Police Command had intercepted the removal of train coaches, suspecting theft. However, the NRC officially refuted these allegations.
According to NRC Managing Director, Engineer Fidet Okhiria, the movement of the coaches was an authorized operation aimed at relocating them to the NRC’s Running Shed in Jos, Plateau State, for refurbishment and subsequent reintegration into service. Okhiria clarified that, “The said coaches are officially being moved to NRC Running Shed Jos, Plateau State to be overhauled and put back into operation.”
To corroborate NRC’s statement, the Nigerian Union of Railway Workers, NURW, confirmed that the personnel involved in the relocation were bona fide NRC employees executing official duties. NURW’s President, Innocent Ajiji, emphasized that the arrested individuals, including Engineer Aliyu Mainasara, the NRC’s Regional District Manager for the Northeast, were legitimately assigned to transport the coaches to Jos. Ajiji also highlighted that the coaches had been inactive for approximately two decades due to infrastructural challenges and were being moved to Jos to support the Plateau State Government’s plans for a rail mass transit system.
CONCLUSION
The video claiming that six trains were stolen from the train station in Nigeria is MISLEADING. The incident happened in October 2023 and reports suggesting the theft of train coaches were based on a misunderstanding. The NRC had officially sanctioned the movement of these coaches for refurbishment purposes, and the personnel involved were authorised staff members carrying out their assigned responsibilities.
