An intelligence-led operation by operatives of the Department of State Services (DSS) has led to the elimination of three suspected bandits and the rescue of nine of their victims during a fierce gun battle in Ekiti Local Government Area of Kwara State.
The victims included farmers seized from their farmlands and others who had earlier been abducted in neighbouring Ekiti State.
They regained their freedom after the kidnappers were forced to flee under heavy gunfire, abandoning their captives.
The operation, which also involved the Kwara State Forest Guards, local hunters and vigilantes, was carried out in the Obbo Aiyegunle, Ejiu Ora and Osi axes of Ekiti LGA bordering Ekiti and Kwara states.
Speaking on Wednesday, the chief press secretary to the chairman of Ekiti LGA, Prince Dada Sunday, confirmed the operation.
He said intelligence gathered by security agencies led to the successful rescue mission.
Sunday said the kidnappers, numbering more than 10, had assembled victims abducted from different locations before they were overwhelmed by the security operatives.
He disclosed that one of the victims sustained serious head injuries after he was cut with a machete while resisting abduction.
One of the rescued victims, Umaru Muazu of Obbo Aiyegunle, recounted their ordeal, saying armed men suddenly emerged and seized him and his son.
“They came from nowhere and pointed a gun to my head. Four of them took me and my son. They also took my friend’s motorcycle before marching us into the bush,” he recounted. Another rescued farmer, Ibrahim Danga, said the victims had been held captive before security operatives arrived and engaged the kidnappers.
A member of the Kwara Forest Guards, Owolabi Adebayo, confirmed that the operation was intelligence-driven.
“We neutralised three of them and rescued nine victims. They were heavily armed and possessed different types of firearms. We need more operational equipment, including body armour, binoculars, night vision goggles, walkie talkies and ammunition to effectively confront them,” he declared.
