Gunmen abduct commercial driver, passengers on Ondo-Ekiti road

Gunmen suspected to be kidnappers, on Tuesday evening, reportedly abducted a driver of a commercial vehicle and some passengers along Akure/Ikere-Ekiti road.

It was gathered that the commercial driver identified as Akinde Felix, was driving towards Akure from Ado Ekiti when the hoodlums who had blocked the roads stopped him and reportedly took him and the passengers away.

Tribune Online learnt that the vehicle which was left opened in the middle of the road attracted members of the public who raised the alarm.

A source at the Ado garage in Akure, who confirmed the abduction of the driver said the actual number of the passengers in the bus could not be confirmed but said the incident had been reported at the police station.

He said “the garage was contacted and the driver’s union swung into action, only to find the vehicle belongs to one of the members of the union,” adding that the “the hoodlums took the advantage of the bad spot to carry out their operation, the whereabouts of the occupants of the vehicle remains unknown, but we have reported to the security operatives.”

The incident occurred barely a week after the Nigerian Army launched an anti-kidnapping drone to tackle kidnapping in Ondo and Ekiti States.

While confirming the development, the State Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), Femi Joseph, said no passengers were abducted alongside the driver.

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Joseph said only the driver of the vehicle who was travelling to Akure was reported to have been kidnapped by the unknown gunmen, adding that it was the family of the driver that reported the incident at the police station.

He described the alarm raised by some people in the state over the incident as a deliberate attempt to cause panic in the state.

He said “the Ondo State Police Command wishes to allay the fears of the general public as a result of the news making the rounds on the social media that an eighteen-seater bus conveying some passengers from Ikere to Akure was blocked while ten passengers were kidnapped.

“We wish to state that the story was exaggerated and good enough, and to set the record straight, a space bus Toyota Previa vehicle was driven by one Akinde Felix from Ikere Ekiti en route Akure on Tuesday, with only the driver inside.

“At about 4:30 pm on a spot close to the NYSC camp at Itaogbolu, the vehicle was blocked by suspected hoodlums, while the driver who was the only occupant was whisked away.

“The Command has since begun an investigation and intensifying efforts to not only rescue the victim but to also arrest the perpetrators”.

He also denied the involvement of any corps member serving in the state in the kidnapping incident, maintaining that only one person was abducted.

Meanwhile, the NYSC in the state, on Wednesday, debunked the news that some corps member in the state have been kidnapped.

This was contained in a statement by the management of the NYSC in the state, saying the news is not only false but baseless and unfounded.

The statement stated that “the management through the established procedure can authoritatively tell the general public especially the parents and guardians not to panic as all corps members serving in all the local governments in the state or those who are currently in camp at Ikare-Akoko are safe, sound and healthy.

“The Management of NYSC has put in place necessary machinery and effective measure to safeguard at all times the lives and properties of members of the service corps.”