By Ibrahim Nyass
The Kwara State Police Command, on Tuesday, paraded 13 suspected criminals for various offences committed in the state.
Among them were suspected kidnappers, who in the course of their operations killed three victims during police rescue mission in Isanlu-Isin and Ijara-Isin forests of Kwara South Senatorial District.
Parading the suspects in Ilorin on Tuesday at the state police command headquarters, the state Police Commissioner, Ebunoluwarotimi Adelesi, identified the dead victims who were allegedly killed by the suspected kidnappers as Kayode Musa, Abubakar Haruna, and Ajide Abiodun.
The masterminds of the dastardly act were also identified as Haruna Nuhu (28), Umaru Shehu (25), Maazu Masaje (35), Sanni Masaje (21), Mohammed Usman (20), and Buba Okeode.
The CP disclosed that exhibits allegedly recovered from the suspects, included five cutlasses, criminal charms, assorted phone sets, one locally made iron pistol with two live ammunition and one expended ammunition of a revolver pistol.
Ebunoluwarotimi, while giving a background to the incident said “On Thursday, July 13, 2023, at approximately 1700HRS, one Abubakar Haruna AKA Muslim and one Kayode Musa ‘M’ were driving from Oke-Onigbin to Isanlu-Isin in a Toyota Camry, when a group of armed men suspected to be Bororo Fulani emerged from the bush, abducted them and disappeared into the bush.
“While effort to rescue the victims were in progress, On 21/7/2023, at about 0630hrs, a team of police officers, local vigilantes, and hunters already on search of the victims were met with hails of gunshots.
“In a bid to escape being captured, the suspects shot and killed their two victims and escaped into the bush, some of them with bullet injuries while Ajide Abiodun Olaoluwa one of the victims was rescued alive.
“In furtherance of the effort by the police to get the kidnappers arrested, the police, hunters and vigilante stormed the forests between Ijara-Isin and Isanlu-Isin where intelligence revealed that the kidnappers were hiding and got the above suspects arrested with their weapons,” the CP added.
Five other suspects paraded by the police for criminal conspiracy and theft included Awokunle Gideon, Yahusa Bashiru, Nuhu Ali, Usman Yahaya and Aliyu Ibrahim, who were were allegedly caught transporting suspected stolen bundles of cable wires along Tanke Area of Ilorin metropolis.
The CP said the suspects will be charged to court on completion of investigation.
Also paraded were two others, one Usman Abdulkadir and Ibrahim Saheed, for alleged theft of a motorcycle and receiving stolen item.
Ibrahim Saheed, a staff of the Kwara state Traffic Management Agency, KWATMA, was arrested for receiving the alleged stolen motorcycle.
