Gunmen kidnap four travellers in Ekiti

No fewer than four people were yesterday abducted by gunmen along Ayetoro Ekiti – Otun Ekiti Road in Ekiti in Ido Osi  Local Government Area of the State.

The yet to be identified victims, according to sources from the area were said to have been ferried into the bush by gun wielding kidnappers .
   
It was gathered that the incident involved  two buses conveying passengers from the Otun Ekiti axis, when the assailants ambushed them and  succeeded in kidnapping four persons  while others escaped by whiskers.

“I advised the hunters and the security agents, who arrived at the scene later that the kidnappers would have gone towards the Otun end and that they would not have gone far that time.

“Definitely, they were the ones who operated along Ayetoro – Ewu Road on Sunday evening. The Sunday operation was not successful and that was why they waited around to carry out this one,” the source said.

“Another twist to the incident was that, , the suspected kidnappers, upon realising that they had missed their prime target, on Sunday evening, started attacking commercial motorcyclists by  shooting sporadically into the air to scare people.”
 
He added: “An okada rider was stopped at gun point and they took all his valuables, while another okada operator escaped into the bush. The kidnappers fled when they noticed the other okada rider had escaped”.

Confirming the abduction, the Police Public Relations Officer, Ekiti Command, Sunday Abutu, said :”We heard the information and we have deployed our personnel there.

“There was a kidnap incident this morning. It began on Sunday evening when some suspected robbers attacked a man who the police thereafter rescued. But this morning, we learnt that the suspects were the ones who abducted some road users. The police are on their trail,” he added.