IN SHORT: A man carrying human skulls was arrested in the Nigerian state of Ondo in June 2024. Ignore posts suggesting the arrest took place in 2025.
Yusuf Adenoyin has just been arrested in Ondo state in Nigeria for possession of eight human skulls. That’s according to a message doing the rounds on social media since June 2025.
Part of one post, dated 15 June, reads: “A shocking arrest in Isua Akoko, Ondo State, has left the community in disbelief. Police officers from the Safer Highway Patrol detained 37-year-old Yusuf Adenoyin after uncovering a horrifying cargo during a routine stop. Inside his possession? Eight human skulls – allegedly being transported from Kogi State to a native doctor in Osun State!”
The post features two photos: one of a man in handcuffs, and another of the man with what appears to be human skulls in front of him.
Ondo and Osun states are in southwestern Nigeria, while Kogi state is in the north-central region.
The same claim can be found here, here and here.
But was there such an arrest in June 2025, as claimed online? We checked.
Old news
Africa Check ran the two photos through a Google reverse image search. The results revealed that the man was arrested in 2024.
According to a news report by Punch newspaper, 31-year-old Yusuf Adenoyin was arrested on 10 June 2024 at a checkpoint in Ondo state.
We searched the social media pages of the Nigeria Police Force and found no such arrests in Ondo in June 2025.
The incident occurred in 2024, not in June 2025 as the posts suggest.
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