The Oyo State Police Command on Tuesday rescued a five-year-old kidnap victim, Fikayo Gbemiga, and arrested two suspects after they demanded a N10 million ransom from her family.
The girl was abducted on July 3, 2026, from her residence at Iyana Offa in Lagelu Local Government Area of the state. The arrested suspects are Seyi Adegboye and Adefemi Adegboye.
The command’s spokesperson, Olayinka Ayanlade, confirmed this in a statement on Wednesday, saying the suspects were arrested by the anti-kidnapping squad, which deployed technological and other investigative tools to trace and identify them.
“The sustained operation culminated in the arrest of the principal suspects on Saturday, July 11, 2026, at about 10:30 p.m. at their hideout in the Mojoyin Molade area of Iwo Road, Ibadan,” Ayanlade said.
“The preliminary investigation revealed that the suspects unlawfully gained access to the complainant’s residence and abducted the five-year-old victim and subsequently demanded a ransom of N10 million for her release. Acting on credible intelligence generated during the course of the investigation, operatives stormed the suspects’ hideout where the victim was rescued unharmed at about 10:35 p.m.,” she added.
The PPRO noted that the operation also led to the arrest of the suspects before they could relocate the child or evade justice. She said the investigation established that the suspects had earlier received N1 million as ransom in Gbongan, Osun State, the previous Wednesday.
Ayanlade added that the suspects were cooperating with investigators, while efforts continue to recover the ransom already collected and apprehend other members of the criminal syndicate who remain at large.
This came two days after a 60-year-old farmer, Mathew Owoade, who was abducted along the Igbojaye-Budo Aare bush road in Itesiwaju Local Government Area of the state, regained his freedom. Ayanlade said the rescue followed the immediate deployment of a coordinated joint security operation and sustained investigative efforts by the command.
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