Ekiti Police Arrest Five Suspected Kidnappers

In a significant crackdown on criminal activities, the Ekiti State Police Command has apprehended five suspected kidnappers in the Iju-Ikere boundary area of the state.

The arrests were announced in a statement released on Tuesday by the state’s Police Public Relations Officer, Abutu Sunday.

This development follows a distressing incident on Monday, where two traditional rulers were reportedly killed by gunmen, suspected to be herdsmen, in the area between Oke-Ako and Ipao-Ekiti in the Ajoni Local Government Area.

The arrested suspects, identified as Usman Jelili, Mohammed Bande, Abubakar Aliu, Isah Abdulahi, and Suleiman Abdulahi, were apprehended during a joint operation conducted by the police, the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), Amotekun, and local hunters.

The operation focused on combing the bushes in the Oke-Osun area and the dense woodlands along the Iju-Ikere boundary, a region notorious for kidnappings.

Items recovered from the suspects include four phones, a cutlass, a jack dagger, and two motorcycles, all of which are believed to have been used in their criminal activities.

The statement read, “In a bid to flush out criminal elements, especially kidnappers out of the state, a combined team of the police, NSCDC, Amotekun, OPC and local hunters today embarked on a bush combing operation through Oke-Osun, Ikere/Igbo-Okah to the thick forest around Iju/Ikere boundary.

“During the operation, five suspected kidnappers, namely- Usman Jelili, Mohammed Bande, Abubakar Aliu, Isah Abdulahi, and Suleiman Abdullahi, were arrested.

“During interrogation, the suspects claimed to be herdsmen, but it was later discovered that none of them had cattle, and no cattle were found with them in the forest where they were arrested.

“The following items were found with them in the forest; two motorcycles, one cutlass, one jack knife/ dagger, and four phones.”