The Ondo State Police Command has arrested three suspected kidnappers caught on a closed-circuit television during a kidnap attack.
The command’s spokesperson, Abayomi Jimoh, disclosed this on Sunday in Akure, the state capital.
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The suspects are Mohammed Koro (27), Muhammad Usman (30), and Musa Alhaji (23).
Earlier this month, kidnappers attacked an estate along Pelebe road in Oda, in Akure South LGA, where they kidnapped a woman after shooting her husband.
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The footage revealed the woman’s children fleeing in different directions while the gunmen forcefully took her away.
Mr Jimoh said the three suspects were arrested in connection with the incident following an analysis of footage that went viral.
”The arrest followed the circulation of CCTV footage on social media showing the abduction of a victim by suspected criminals in the Oda area of Akure.
“Upon receiving the footage, the command immediately activated its intelligence team, leveraging digital surveillance analysis and coordinated field operations to identify and apprehend the suspects.
”Acting on credible intelligence and investigative leads derived from the footage, operatives of the command’s Anti-Kidnapping Squad carried out targeted operations which led to the arrest of one of the suspects,” he said.
Mr Jimoh said that during interrogation, the suspect provided useful information that led to the subsequent arrest of two other accomplices, believed to have played active roles in the incident, who were also captured on CCTV footage.
According to him, preliminary investigations revealed that the suspects played various roles in the commission of the alleged crime.
Rescue
He also said the police rescued three people kidnapped by the syndicate and that they are receiving treatment in a hospital.
”However, operational efforts have culminated in the successful rescue of three victims earlier kidnapped by the syndicate, namely: (1) Tosin Adesida ‘F’, (2) Adeniran Adesuyi ‘M’, and (3) Adewunmi Adewusi ‘M’,” he said.
”They have been debriefed and taken to the nearest hospital for medical attention,”
Mr Jimoh stated that further investigations are ongoing following additional confessional statements that are aiding efforts to arrest other syndicate members.
”They will be charged in court upon the conclusion of investigations,” he said.
The increasing cases of kidnapping in Ondo State informed a meeting between Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria (MACBAN) and the Governor of Ondo State, Lucky Aiyedatiwa, last week.
During the meeting, Mr Aiyedatiwa asked the herders association to do more by providing useful information that would help to identify suspected criminals amongst its ranks.
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The association, however, told the governor that those perpetrating kidnapping in the state are not of the Fulani ethnic extraction alone.
Meanwhile, the state government has since taken some measures to restrict movement, especially by commercial motorcycle operators at night.
The operators have also been given a deadline to register their motorcycles with the security agencies in the state.
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