Three suspected members of a kidnap gang, who have been unleashing terror on commuters on Lagos/Ibadan highway, particularly at Alapako/Fidiwo axis, have been arrested by operatives in Ogun State Police Command.
The arrest was made on Thursday, April 8, 2021, according to a statement by the police spokesman in the state, DSP Abimbola Oyeyemi on Monday, April 12.
Giving the names of the suspects as Nathaniel Jacob (24), from Nasarawa State; Isah Danladi (22), from Kogi State and Abubakar Rabiu (23), from Niger State, the PPRO said that they were arrested at Fidiwo area, on Lagos/Ibadan highway, following a tip-off from some hunters, who sighted them in the bush.
They were said to have been planning on their next strike on innocent people.
Oyeyemi said that the hunters quickly alerted the police operatives, who got support from other stakeholders such as So Safe Corps, hunters and vigilante group, before storming the Fidiwo/Alapako bush.
“On sighting the police, the suspects took to their heels, but luck ran out on them and they were subsequently apprehended, while three others escaped with their arms.
“On interrogation, the suspects confessed to having been in the bush for the past 10 days, waiting for a convenient opportunity to strike.
“It took them that long because of heavy presence of policemen along the stretch on the highway.
“They stated further that they were six in number that made up the gang, and that the three escapees were in possession of their arms,” the police image-maker disclosed.
He stated further that revelations during preliminary investigation showed that the gang was responsible for the series of kidnapping along the highway.
Recovered from the gang were cutlasses, which they claimed were seized from farmers they saw in their farms.
Oyeyemi added that the state Commissioner of Police, Edward Awolowo Ajogun, had ordered the immediate transfer of the suspects to Anti-Kidnapping Unit of the State Criminal Investigation and Intelligence Department for discreet investigation.
The police commissioner also assured members of the public that all the kidnap cases in the state would not go unresolved, as the command was working towards bringing the perpetrators to book.
