By Thompson Yamput
The Kogi Commissioner for Information, Mr Kingsley Fanwo says security operatives are on the trail of Kidnappers and their collaborators operating in the state.
Fanwo in a statement he signed on Sunday in Lokoja, said the state has launched a crackdown on criminal elements in order to rid the state of their nefarious activities.
He descrcribed activities of kidnapping gangs in parts of the state, such as Kabba/Bunu, Ijumu, Yagba East, and Yagba West Local Government Areas as very unfortunate and sad.
“This discovery followed a coordinated crackdown by joint security forces in response to recent security breaches, including abduction and death of a retired Nigerian Army officer from Odo-Ape, the kidnap of a prominent farmer from Ponyan in Yagba East, and a series of related incidents in Yagba West.”
Fanwo said the operations led to significant arrests and exposure of those fueling criminal activity in the state, including the case of late Samson Enietan, a criminal informant who died shortly after being identified as a key accomplice in the Odo-Ape abduction
The commissioner said Enietan’s death was initially linked to a suicide, which the state government suspects foul play, alleging that he (Enietan) may have been eliminated by fellow collaborators to cover up a wider network of criminal conspirators.
“Among those arrested was Babatunde Aledare, a native of Ayetoro Kiri in Kabba/Bunu local government areas, who is now in custody and has made confessional statements outlining his role in the kidnapping ring.
“Aledare’s testimony has led to additional arrests in the last 48 hours, and further exposed the internal collaborators aiding the gangs, ‘” he said.
He stressed that the kidnapping of the farmer from Ponyan also brought to light, the extent of internal collaboration, with several locals identified as informants.
According to him, these developments confirm the painful reality that some residents are aiding those, who destabilise their own communities through disturbing patterns of logistical support being provided to kidnappers.
He alleged that some bread sellers and sachet water factories were supplying basic necessities to kidnappers in forest hideouts, while motorcycle riders acted as couriers, transporting goods to the criminals, allowing them to sustain operations undetected.
“In addition, certain fuel stations were implicated in selling petrol in containers, which were then transported into the forest to power the kidnappers’ camps.
“Again, some wood contractors, also participated by supplying food to criminal groups in exchange for “business protection.”
The commissioner warned that, vendors, fuel stations, and individuals found supporting criminals would be prosecuted and no one would be spared, whether they sell fuel, food, land, or information to the criminals.
He said that currently, some traditional rulers and youths are under investigation for allegedly selling land to criminal elements, who used them to establish detention camps for kidnapped victims.
Fanwo reaffirmed Gov. Ahmed Ododo’s administration’s commitment to ensuring peace and stability across the state, stressing that efforts to rescue all remaining kidnapped victims are ongoing. NAN
