Lagos

Public Safety

Crime is endemic in Lagos. Property crimes, including armed burglaries and car theft, have been particularly high, fueled as much by large-scale unemployment as by wide disparities in income and life chances. Financial fraud is also rampant, the most recent variant being advance fee fraud, the practice of obtaining money by deception and/or false pretense, popularly known as "419" after the relevant section of Nigeria's penal code. Traffic accidents are rife too, reflecting competition for space by people and vehicles, as well as disrepair in the latter.

Crime statistics are wide of the mark: many incidents go unreported or become tangled in influence peddling and corruption networks. There are plans to increase the number of policemen and improve law enforcement generally in and around greater Lagos.