Fidelis David in Akure
The Ondo State Security Network Agency, codenamed Amotekun Corps, has arrested 53 suspects in connection with various criminal activities, including kidnapping, murder, cultism, robbery, rape and suspected illegal immigration across the state.
The Commander of the Corps, Adetunji Adeleye, disclosed this on Monday while parading the suspects in Akure, where he said the arrests were parts of the successes of the corps in the last two weeks which followed intensified intelligence gathering and coordinated operations across several flashpoints in the state.
Adeleye said the Corps also rescued two kidnapped victims in the Akoko area after an operation conducted in collaboration with Fulani farmers and herders, noting that one of the victims was severely wounded by his abductors.
“You can see the plaster; he is receiving medical attention in our facility here. In an attempt to kill him, they macheted his head, his body and every part of him. We brought him back alive and he is now stable,” he said.
According to him, a military uniform was recovered from one of the suspected kidnappers during the operation, while members of the local Fulani community helped identify some of the suspects allegedly involved in the crime.
“I want to thank those of them that refused to join the bad wagon of herders terrorising the state,” Adeleye said, urging other community members to continue providing actionable intelligence to security agencies.
The Commander also disclosed that the Corps had arrested four members of a suspected self-kidnapping syndicate in Akure North, following a false alarm allegedly raised on social media that a man had been kidnapped.
He said the investigation revealed that a person who rushed to the Amotekun office to report the alleged abduction of his siblings was actually an accomplice, adding that he subsequently led operatives to a house where the supposed kidnap victim was found.
“Upon detailed investigation, we found out that the man who rushed to the Amotekun Corps office to report that his siblings were kidnapped turned out to be an accomplice. He led us to his home where we found the man they claimed had been kidnapped,” he said.
Adeleye further said four of seven suspects linked to kidnapping incidents around the Osi/Igboba axis of Akure North had been arrested, following an earlier pledge by the Corps to get to the root of criminal activities in the area.
He listed other suspects arrested across the state, including four men linked to kidnapping, robbery, attempted kidnapping and attempted murder in the Usi/Igboba axis; four suspects arrested in Ogbese over alleged conspiracy and kidnapping; and three suspects arrested around Isua in Akoko South-East over alleged conspiracy and kidnapping.
The Commander said the Corps also arrested suspects over alleged murder, cultism and conspiracy around Ode-Aye and Okitipupa, while one suspect was apprehended in Odode-Idanre for alleged impersonation and another in the Ode-Aye/Okitipupa axis for suspected cattle rustling.
Adeleye disclosed that operatives also disrupted an alleged multimillion-naira diesel theft operation involving a construction firm/quarry along the Ondo Road in Akure, recovering more than 30 containers containing suspected stolen diesel.
He identified three suspects — James, 35; Dayo, 38; and Tomisin, 41 — as among the major suspects in the alleged diesel theft operation, while another suspect, Ganius, was arrested in connection with a stolen Golf vehicle recovered within Akure.
He said the Corps also recovered a stolen Tiger generator, a TVS motorcycle, aluminium products, household equipment and suspected stolen church electronic equipment, while several suspects were arrested in connection with the various offences.
On the issue of foreigners residing in the state, Adeleye raised concern over what he described as the growing presence of suspected illegal immigrants operating under different guises, particularly in Owo.
He said 21 foreigners were arrested after allegedly renting two apartments in Owo under the guise of coming from neighbouring West African countries to engage in menial jobs and phone repairs, adding that they allegedly lacked the required ECOWAS documentation.
“We have directed them to the relevant sister security agencies for scrutiny. We found out that they don’t even have ECOWAS papers to guarantee their stay,” Adeleye said.
He warned landlords against accommodating people without properly verifying their identities and documentation, stressing that those who knowingly aid criminal elements could also face legal consequences.
“Most times when their sponsors abandon them, they become ready tools as criminals and accomplices,” he said.
