A Nigerian lady has threatened to take MTN to court after her father was arrested over a phone number allegedly linked to criminal activities before it was assigned to him.
The lady, whose identity was not disclosed, shared the experience in a video posted on social media, explaining how the incident left her family distressed and raised questions about the reassignment of previously used phone numbers.
According to her account, the trouble began on November 30, 2025, when operatives of the Department of State Services (DSS) arrested her father after tracing a phone number to his residence.
She said the authorities claimed that the number had been used in connection with a crime by someone who previously owned it.
The lady explained that she learnt about her father’s arrest from family members on Monday. However, her attempts to see or communicate with him at the DSS facility were unsuccessful.
She subsequently made a video about the incident on Tuesday, after which her father was released at about 11am.
Although he regained his freedom, she said he was instructed to continue reporting to the authorities and complied with the directive.
The lady added that the matter had taken another turn after she learnt that it involved an international investigation.
She said the development had strengthened her resolve to pursue legal action against MTN, which she blamed for the problems her family had experienced.
Explaining her position, she cited the Nigerian Communications Act 2003 and the Nigeria Data Protection Act 2023, arguing that telecommunications companies should take adequate steps to prevent the information and activities associated with previous owners of phone numbers from affecting new subscribers.
She maintained that the company should be held accountable for what she described as negligence and said she intended to seek compensation for the distress caused to her family.
However, her allegations against MTN and the legal basis for her proposed action have not been established in court.
Nigerians Share Experiences With Recycled SIM Cards
The lady’s account has drawn reactions from social media users, some of whom shared similar experiences involving phone numbers previously used by other people.
Others questioned whether the telecommunications company or the security agencies should bear responsibility for the incident.
See Some reactions below:
@Lucynneka5 shared her experience with an Airtel SIM card, saying: “I bought Airtel sim and the previous owner friends was always disturbing me, one even called me a thief that I should give the owner her number. I have to go back to where I bought it they told me they always resell number of inactive customers.”
@OgwucheGodfrey questioned why MTN should be sued instead of the authorities who arrested her father. “Why not sue the police that arrested him.
A simple request to mtn would have told them when the line was allocated to your father. We like attacking innocent companies while the real criminals are bullying us. Did police inform mtn that the line is tainted”
@WorldLinkNaija called on telecommunications regulators and security agencies to establish the ownership history of recycled numbers. “But the NCC and the DSS should be able to ascertain when the new NIN was registered to the Sim and the period when the crime was committed. Also I want to believe MTN and NCC should still have the records of the previous user.”
@dqueenwarrior also complained about receiving calls meant for a previous owner of a recycled number. “Even @AirtelNigeria
the recycled phone number I got for my underage children for check up at home belongs to an adult male whose friends keeps calling till now.
These are little girls,I had to instruct them not to pick any number not saved in their contact.
Stop the madness”
@Xelest9a urged MTN to improve its verification process before assigning numbers to new subscribers. “MTN, Why not check the records and verify status of each SIM card before recycling it to end users.
Carry out due diligence, do the needful and save Africans this unnecessary stress.”
Similar Cases Raise Concerns Over Recycled Phone Numbers
The latest incident is not the first reported case in Nigeria in which a subscriber has faced trouble over a phone number previously used by another person.
In 2019, Anthony Okolie was arrested by DSS operatives in Asaba, Delta State, after purchasing an MTN SIM card previously used by Hanan Buhari, daughter of former President Muhammadu Buhari.
Okolie was detained for about 10 weeks before his release in December 2019. He subsequently sued the DSS, MTN and Hanan Buhari over his detention.
In May 2020, a Federal High Court in Asaba ordered the DSS to pay him ₦10 million in damages for violating his fundamental human rights. The court, however, found no substantial evidence against MTN and Hanan Buhari in the case.
Another incident involved corps member Mariam Ibrahim, who was arrested by police officers in October 2025 over a phone number allegedly linked to a kidnapping and murder investigation.
Ibrahim reportedly told the police that she bought the Airtel SIM card in April 2025, months after the crime under investigation. Airtel subsequently confirmed that the line was purchased and activated on April 15, 2025.
The police later acknowledged that she had done nothing wrong if the purchase date could be established, although she experienced further delays before her seized phones were returned.
The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has also acknowledged the risks associated with recycled numbers and introduced the Telecoms Identity Risk Management System (TIRMS).
The system is designed to help authorised organisations verify whether a phone number is active, has been reassigned, or has undergone a SIM swap, among other status changes. It is intended to reduce fraud and identity-related risks linked to recycled numbers.
These cases highlight the need for better coordination between telecommunications operators, regulators, banks and security agencies. Verifying when a number was assigned to its current subscriber and checking its previous status before linking it to criminal investigations could help prevent innocent people from being treated as suspects over activities that occurred before they acquired the line.
For the lady threatening legal action against MTN, the outcome of any proposed lawsuit remains to be seen. But the recurring incidents show why stronger safeguards around recycled phone numbers remain an important consumer protection issue in Nigeria.
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