The Oyo State Police Command has arrested six suspected armed robbers following a five-week intelligence-gathering operation and manhunt that culminated in their arrest at a hideout in Ibadan.
The suspects were arrested during a search that led to the recovery of five firearms, five live cartridges and four cutlasses.

The firearms recovered comprised a fabricated English-made pistol, a revolver pistol, a pump-action gun, a locally made cut-to-size gun and another locally made pistol.

The suspects were identified as Yusuf Adeyemi, 39, of Esu Awele area, Ibadan; Isiaka Kayode, 40, of Odinjo; Yusuf Basiru, 35, of Oja Oba, behind the Central Mosque; Adewale Lawal, 38, of Orita Aperin; Saheed Lateef, 36, also of Orita Aperin; and Idowu Olanrewaju, 42, of Olohunda, Akanran area.

According to the police, the arrests followed weeks of intelligence gathering and surveillance aimed at tracking the activities of the suspected gang before officers moved in to apprehend its members.

The command said the suspects had, during interrogation, confessed to belonging to a criminal gang allegedly responsible for terrorising residents of Ibadan and its environs.

It added that investigations were ongoing to establish the full extent of the suspects’ alleged criminal activities and determine whether other individuals were connected to the gang.

The suspects remain in police custody as investigators probe their possible links to other armed robbery cases in the state.

Reacting to the development, the Commissioner of Police, Oyo State Command, CP Abimbola Ayodeji Olugbenga, emphasised the command’s commitment to sustaining intelligence-led operations against armed robbery and other violent crimes.

Olugbenga appreciated members of the public for their cooperation and urged residents to provide credible and actionable information that could assist the police in preventing and detecting criminal activities.

The command reiterated its commitment to working with the public and other relevant stakeholders to dismantle criminal networks, protect lives and property, and maintain peace and security across Oyo State.