CP seeks tracking devices, drones to tackle crimes in Ondo

Says battling criminality with analog method archaic
The Ondo State Commissioner of Police (CP), Wilfred Afolabi, has said that for the increasing rate of kidnappings and killings in the state to be effectively tackled, there is need for tracking devices and drones to be provided.

According to the police boss, the use of analog method of fighting crimes is no longer in vogue, hence the need for police operatives to deploy modern method to battle criminals, particularly kidnappers in the state.

Afolabi stated this, at the weekend, while parading some notorious kidnappers and a former convict that are terrorising some parts of the state and other suspects at the police headquarters in Akure, the state capital.

He said: “Kidnapping has evolved into a more sophisticated crime, and we cannot afford to use techniques from the 1970s and 1980s to handle it. We need more resources, including tracking devices, to locate and apprehend perpetrators.

“I had to bring in a private tracker to get to know the location of these bad boys, and it yielded good results.

The CP also revealed that several of the suspected kidnappers arrested recently were already on the police’s wanted list for their involvement in previous crimes, as well as a former convict, who had been terrorising the Akure airport axis.

He said: “The recent spate of kidnappings in Akure, particularly in the Oke-Oge area near the airport, has been a source of concern over the past two weeks. During this period, two farmers and two IT students from a higher institution in the city were kidnapped.”

“On February 13, 2025, the police arrested one Aminu at Akure garage in Ikare-Akoko, which led to the apprehension of Abdullahi Abubakar, aged 25. Further investigation led to the arrest of Yusuf Saidu, 22, Nafiu Ibrahim, 32, Mohammed Anas, 20, and Kabiru Mohammed, 24.

“In Ipele, a woman was abducted by unknown gunmen, but the police and youths of the town mobilised and rescued her. During the rescue operation, an AK-49 rifle was recovered. One of the suspects, Yusuf Suleiman, 27, was arrested through intelligence-led policing.

“Ishaku Abdul, 40, a former convict, was arrested by the Special Anti-Kidnapping Squad (SAKS) based on a tip-off. Abdul was suspected by his neighbours of being complicit in recent kidnappings in the area.”