The Ogun Police Command on Thursday said it had arrested four members of a kidnap gang that abducted three persons at Ode-Omi Community in Ogun Waterside Council Area on Aug. 11.
A statement on Thursday by the Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO) of the command, DSP Abimbola Oyeyemi, said that the kidnappers were arrested on Wednesday.
The suspected kidnappers had stormed the community on Aug.11, during the Eid-El Kabir celebrations, abducted three people and escaped in two speedboats.
The kidnappers were reported to have later contacted the families of the victims including the Chief Imam of the area and demanded N30 million as ransom, but the police rescued the victims on Aug. 16.
“The three victims namely Adamson Bamidele, Adam Jelil and Sanni Azeez were earlier rescued on Aug.16, while police kept on trailing their abductors who still hid in the creek.
”At a stage, the policemen advanced on their hideout in the creek and engaged them in a gun battle. Four policemen were injured in the process forcing the policemen to withdraw, but laid ambush around the area.
“Unknown to them that they are being trailed, four members of the gang came out of the creek probably to relocate to another place and police swooped on them and got them arrested.
“When the arrested suspects were being taken to Abeokuta by the police, their colleagues who had laid ambush attacked the police team with the intention of rescuing their members.
“At the end of the ensuing gun duel, two out of the arrested suspects and one of the attackers were injured while some of the attackers escaped with bullet injuries.
“One pump action gun belonging to the attackers and three expended cartridges were recovered at the scene of the ambush,” he said.
Abimbola urged members of the public, especially hospitals to report anybody seen with gunshot injury to the police in their area.
