At least 13 passengers were kidnapped along Abuja /Isua road in Akoko South-East Local Government Area of Ondo state by some gunmen suspected to be kidnappers.
It was gathered that the passengers were heading towards Lagos from Abuja when the gun-wielding men stopped the vehicle and started shooting into the air, forcing the driver of the vehicle to stop.
According to a source, who explained that at least 13 of the passengers in the 18-seater bus were abducted by the hoodlums in the evening of Tuesday, June 6, 2023, and marched them into the forest.
He said, “It was like a movie when the hoodlums ordered the passengers out of the vehicle and abducted 13 passengers around Isua, leaving only three of the victims behind.
The source however, said security operatives and men of the Amotekun and men swiftly responded and Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps traced the hoodlums into the forest.
He said while combing the forest some victims were rescued while the kidnappers engaged the security operatives in a gun duel, killing one of the suspected criminals.
He said the victims were rescued some 20 kilometres from the scene of the incident and said they were taken to the Isua Police Station.
He said “The joint security agents immediately embarked on combing of the forest and their efforts yielded fruitful result when some of the abducted travelers were rescued during the joint operation”
Confirming the abduction and the rescue of the some of the victims, the State Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO) Funmi Odunlami, said one of the kidnappers was shot dead when they engaged security men in gun duel
She said, ” The victims were rescued by the joint security operation. One of them was killed during gun duel. We are on top of the situation.”