Gunmen strike in Ondo, kidnap couple
•Injure neighbour in a violent attack•Residence protest over incessant kidnappings Suspected gunmen have abducted a couple, Jamiu Olawale and his wife, at their residence in the Olaribigba Estate of Iluabo
•Injure neighbour in a violent attack
•Residence protest over incessant kidnappings
Suspected gunmen have abducted a couple, Jamiu Olawale and his wife, at their residence in the Olaribigba Estate of Iluabo in the Akure North Local Council Area of Ondo State.
The assailants also shot a neighbour, Patrick Ilumaro, who was seated in front of his residence during a brazen night attack.
Ilumaro was immediately rushed to a nearby hospital for treatment.
According to residents, the violent attack occurred at about 9:45 p.m., as the victims were returning from their shop in an ash-coloured Toyota Camry.
One of the residents, who spoke under the condition of anonymity, disclosed that the assailants emerged from a nearby bush and struck at the frontage of the couple's residence.
He revealed that the gunmen, numbering about five, seized the couple and whisked them away to an unknown destination.
Confirming the incident in a statement on Saturday, the Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), DSP Abayomi Jimoh, said the Commissioner of Police, CP Adebowale Lawal, had deployed tactical teams in collaboration with conventional operatives to comb the surrounding bushes and adjoining areas.
Abayomi explained that the move is aimed at rescuing the victims unhurt and apprehending those behind the attack.
He added that efforts were ongoing to secure the safe return of the abducted couple and ensure that the perpetrators are brought to justice.
"Concerted efforts are ongoing to ensure the safe return of the abducted persons and bring those responsible to justice," he said.
Abayomi, however, asked the residents to remain calm and go about their lawful activities while appealing to members of the public to provide credible and actionable information at the nearest police station to aid ongoing investigations.
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Following the latest kidnap incident, the residents of Eleyeowo in Ilu Abo community, Akure North Local Government Area, have stormed the streets to protest over the incident.
The aggrieved residents blocked the Akure-Owo expressway against the recent kidnapping of two persons and the shooting of another in the community, paralysing vehicular activities on the road.
The protesters, who barricaded the busy highway, decried the worsening security situation in the area and displayed placards with different inscriptions to draw the state government's attention to what they described as insecurity and inadequate response from the state government and security agencies.
The latest abduction is coming barely forty hours after suspected gunmen stormed the Agamo community and killed the monarch, Oba Kehinde Falodun, in a failed kidnap attempt.
