Security Operatives Hunt Kidnappers In Ondo Bushes

Following the kidnapped of travellers in Ondo State, the state police command has ordered the deployment of Special squads to the Akunnu Akoko area of the state to rescue some kidnapped victims and arrest their abductors.

Some passengers were abducted on Friday evening by kidnappers in an area between Akunu Akoko and Iyere.

LEADERSHIP gathered that the victims who were travelling in an 18-seater bus were taken away into the forest, but the driver was shot dead.

According to a source, a little girl was left behind by the hoodlums on the bus.

Although a combined team of police, soldiers and hunters arrived at the scene and promptly began combing the bushes, no trace of the kidnappers had been found.

The police public relations officer Funmilayo Odunlami-Omisanya who reacted to the incident yesterday, said personnel drawn from various tactical units led by the Special Anti Kidnapping Squad have also been briefed and deployed to the area for the rescue of victims and possible arrest of suspects.

Odunlami-Omisanya said, “The command has however enjoined the people of the state and the general motoring public not to panic insisting the incident was an isolated case that does not determine the security status of the state. ”

The development has incensed tensions among residents over a likely resurgence of kidnapping in the state.

Amotekun Corps in the state had paraded several suspects involved in the act in recent times, with a promise to stem the tide of kidnappings and other violent crimes in the state.

The corps under the late Governor Oluwarotimi Akeredolu, demanded the use of automatic rifles to enable it to tackle the bandits who are often well-armed with such lethal weapons.