Edo State’s Special Security Squad, codenamed Operation Flush Out Cultists and Kidnappers, has dismantled five suspected kidnapper camps in Edo North Senatorial District during a large-scale bush-combing operation in Ekeke Erah Forest, Owan East Local Government Area.
The operation, coordinated by the Principal Security Officer (PSO) to Governor Monday Okpebholo, was carried out in collaboration with the Nigerian Army, local vigilante groups, and other security agencies.
According to a statement by the Governor’s Chief Press Secretary, Fred Itua, on Saturday, security operatives trekked nearly five kilometres deep into the forest, between Afuze and Ora, where they uncovered and destroyed the camps.
Eribo Ewanta, a member of the squad, said signs of recent activity confirmed that the hideouts were still in active use.
“We discovered five camps, with clear indications that their occupants had only just fled. We found a fire still burning and a pot of food left behind, confirming the presence of suspected kidnappers,” he explained.
The operation escalated into a gun battle at a riverbank when suspected kidnappers, apparently alerted to the security presence, tried to escape. Evidence of cattle grazing in the forest also suggested that the camps might have been linked to armed herdsmen.
“We engaged the suspects in a heavy exchange of gunfire, but they escaped deeper into the forest. However, we are on their trail. Their camps have been dismantled and destroyed. Edo State will no longer be a safe haven for criminal elements,” Ewanta stated.
He assured Edo residents that the raid marked the beginning of intensified efforts to eradicate kidnappers and other violent groups from the state.
“We are battle-ready. The Governor’s directive is clear: Edo must be free of criminal elements. We will pursue them relentlessly until they are captured,” he added.
Ewanta praised Governor Okpebholo for his unwavering commitment to strengthening security across the state, noting that the government’s coordinated security strategy is restoring public confidence and sending a strong message to criminal networks.