Couple, four others abducted along Kwara-Kogi border

A couple and four other people have been abducted along the Eruku-Iyemero Road, which links Kwara and Kogi states.

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The couple, identified as Funmilayo Bamidele and Abiodun David, were abducted on Saturday evening while returning from their engagement ceremony in Eruku, Kwara State, according to Channels Television.

The victims were reportedly travelling in a vehicle that was expected to use the Isanlu Road when the driver took a back route to drop off the best man and other members of the group in Iyamoye, Kogi State.

The vehicle was subsequently intercepted by suspected bandits along the Iyemero-Eruku Road, where the occupants were taken away.

PREMIUM TIMES gathered that the whereabouts of the other victims and details of the abduction remained unclear as of Sunday.

Confirming the incident, Kwara State Commissioner of Police, Adekimi Ojo, said security agencies had launched a joint operation to rescue the victims and arrest the perpetrators, according to Channels Television.

Mr Ojo said soldiers were already combing the bush in search of the victims and their abductors.

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He added that the vehicle conveying the victims was later found parked at an abandoned police station in Ayetoro, Ekiti State.

The commissioner said police operatives in Kwara, Kogi and Ekiti states were collaborating on the rescue operation because the incident occurred around communities bordering the three states.

The abduction comes amid a series of kidnapping incidents reported in Kwara State in recent weeks.

PREMIUM TIMES earlier reported that police on 27 August rescued the Onigbesi of Igbesi, Oba Moses Omotayo, and two other victims after they were abducted in Igbesi, Isin Local Government Area, on 22 August. Police said one suspected kidnapper was killed during the rescue operation.

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On 24 August, PREMIUM TIMES also reported the abduction of Iya Ayoka, the first wife of the Baale of Dabu in Ifelodun Local Government Area. The incident was reported alongside the earlier abduction of 23-year-old Babatunde Fasilat from Wande community, whose abductors reportedly demanded N20 million ransom.

The latest abduction adds to a series of kidnapping incidents reported in communities across Kwara State in recent weeks, raising concerns over the growing insecurity and its impact on residents and travellers along the state’s border communities.