Ondo : Army, Amotekun Burst Kidnappers’ Hideouts, Arrest 37 Suspects

By Ayodele Oni

The war to rid south west of kidnappers has spread to Ondo state as a joint patrol embarked upon by the Nigerian Army and men of the Amotekun Corps with other Security agencies, led to mass arrest of suspected kidnappers.

Other persons suspected to be criminal elements were also rounded up during the special operation which will last for a week.

During the operations, no fewer than 37 suspected criminals were apprehended across the 18 Local Government Area of the State.

The patrol, which was held simultaneously across the state, was part of efforts put in place by the state government to ensure a crime-free Eid-El-Fitri celebration.

The Ondo State Commander of Amotekun Corps, Adetunji Adeleye made this known while parading the suspects at the corps headquarters in Akure.

According to him, the patrol which started since Friday last week, will continue till Thursday to make it a full week exercise to rid the society, Ondo and its environs of criminal elements.

“In the last five days, we have been able to harvest a number of criminals ranging from Armed robbers, suspected kidnappers, fraudsters, Yahoo yahoo boys and those that are engaged in nefarious activities.

“I want to commend men of the Nigeria Army from the 32 Artillery Brigade for their huge support likewise the Nigeria Police force, the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) and of course, the Department of State Service (DSS) for their support towards ensuring that the holiday was crime free.

Akogun Adeleye who is also the Special Adviser to the Governor on Security matters, hinted, that during the operation, they busted a number of criminal activities such as kidnapping at the border town of Ondo state.

“As a result of the intense pressure we mounted on the Kidnappers, they were compelled to release some victims and as at now, we don’t have any kidnapped victim in the State.

“With Intelligence, we are able to follow grassroots intelligent report to clamp down on their hideouts and we will continue to do that inline with the policy of the Ondo State Governor, Arakunrin Akeredolu.

“You will agree with me that he places a lot of premium on the security of lives and properties of residents in the state.

“Residents, commuters and business owners in the state are testifying, that the atmosphere is clear for smooth transactions.

“And for farmers, we want you to go back to your farms and we assure you of your safety. We also enjoin you to give us timely information to work with once you see suspected movement around.

“I also want to assure members of the public that the law will take its full course on all that are found to be culpable.”

He, however, reiterated the smooth working relationship existing between the Army and the Amotekun Corps.

“I keep saying that there is no personal disagreement between the Army and members of the Ondo state security Network Agency.

“There were operational frictions which have been resolved and as you witness today, you would see that we are working closely together and we are happy working together.

“We don’t have any problem with the Army, they are playing the roles they are supposed to play in curbing crime in Ondo State and I tell you, that the Army and other security agencies have been actively involved in most of the major successful operations that are going on in the state.”