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From Tony Osauzo, Benin
The Edo State Police Command yesterday announced that its operatives have rescued four kidnapped victims on Benin-Akure Road, killing a suspected kidnapper in a gun duel with policemen, in a separate encounter.
The identities of the rescued victims were given as Okolie Chukuka, 33; Samson Ayodele, 41; Mrs. Ronke Makinde, 30, and her five-year-old daughter.
Deputy spokesperson of the Command, Jennifer Iwegbu, who announced the rescue in a statement, said: “Following credible information at the command’s disposal, on August 20, at 9:50pm, hoodlums suspected to be kidnappers and dressed in military uniform, emerged from the bush, along the Benin-Akure Road, intercepted a Toyota Camry car, with registration number: MM 528 AA, and whisked the occupants into the bush.
Operatives of the command immediately mobilised to the scene for rigorous bush combing and rescue of the victims. The hoodlums, on sighting the operatives on their trail, opened fire on them, which led to a gun duel.
“The superior firepower of the police operatives took charge in the operation and the kidnappers took to their heels, abandoning four of their victims. Fierce bush combing is ongoing to rescue one of the kidnapped victims left, and also to arrest the fleeing gang members,” the statement added. Besides, the statement said, in another encounter on August 20, operatives of the command, acting on credible information, killed a suspected kidnapper.
It explained that through a man who escaped from a kidnappers’ den, operatives of the command, in collaboration with vigilance members and hunters, laid ambush at Iyuku forest in Edo, where the man was earlier abducted.
