By Ado Oyeyemi
Security operatives in Kogi State have intensified efforts to rescue victims of a reported kidnapping along the Okene-Auchi Road, with the police and Nigerian Army deploying tactical teams and drones to suspected criminal hideouts.
The search operation, which covers forest corridors around the Okene-Ajokuta axis, is also targeting suspected kidnappers believed to be operating in the area.
The Kogi State Police Command spokesperson, ASP Afusat Salisu, disclosed this in a statement on Sunday.
Salisu said the command immediately launched a rescue operation after the incident, deploying police and military personnel to forests believed to be being used as hideouts by the suspected kidnappers.
She said personnel from the Area Command, Okene, the 77 Police Mobile Force Squadron, Okene, Okene and Adavi divisions, the state Anti-Kidnapping Unit and the Violent Crime Response Unit were involved in the operation.
According to her, Nigerian Army personnel attached to Forward Operating Bases in the area also joined the search, while the Edo State Police Command provided additional support through its Anti-Kidnapping Unit and other tactical teams.
She said security agencies had also strengthened surveillance along the Kogi-Edo border to prevent the suspected criminals from escaping through adjoining forest routes.
As the operation progressed, the security teams reportedly discovered and searched several suspected hideouts in the forest.
Among the items recovered were foodstuffs, cooking materials, an Army-pattern jungle hat and a National Identity Card, which the police said were suspected to have been abandoned by the criminal elements.
Salisu added that the identified hideouts were destroyed and set ablaze to prevent them from being used again by the suspects.
She, however, disclosed that no kidnapped victim was found during the initial search of the locations.
Despite this, she said the security forces had continued advancing into the forest and adjoining areas in their efforts to locate the victims and arrest those responsible for the abduction.
The search operation continued on Saturday, with tactical teams moving towards locations of interest around the Ajaokuta and Adoko axes.
Salisu said drones deployed by the Nigerian Army and the Edo State Police Command were being used to provide aerial surveillance and support intelligence gathering during the operation.
The Kogi State Commissioner of Police, Naziru Kankarofi, directed the security teams to sustain the search until the victims were rescued and the suspected perpetrators apprehended.
He also assured residents that the police were working with other security agencies and relevant stakeholders to ensure that those behind the incident were brought to justice.
The command appealed to residents, particularly those living around the affected areas, to remain calm and vigilant and provide security agencies with credible information that could assist the rescue operation.
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Salisu said the safety and recovery of the kidnapped victims remained the command’s immediate priority.
