… Soldiers, Bandits in Gun War
Three commuters have been reportedly kidnapped on Friday morning in Ikole local government area of Ekiti State.
The victims were said to be coming from Ayedun -Ekiti to Ilasa when they fell into the hands of the the gunmen .
The Kidnap attempt had been earlier thwarted at Ayebode Ekiti,a nearby community to Ayedun ,but the gunmen later escaped and perfected the abduction
The victim were traveling along Ayebode- Ilasa road, when the gunmen started shooting and those who escaped the scene quickly called the nearby Army post and the personnel were said to have responded swiftly.
Two of the occupants of the vehicle that forcefully escaped were said to have been hit by bullets and sustained fractures in their legs, while their car was riddled with bullets .
Motorists playing the routes took another road because of the incident for their safety during the incident which occurred around 10:00am in the morning.
The soldiers according to an eyewitness engaged the bandits at two different locations; Ayebode and Ilasa and pursued them into the bush to disband the operations.
“Though the soldiers succeeded in pursuing the kidnappers into the bush, but none was apprehended.
“It was sporadic shootings between the soldiers and the kidnappers. The soldiers acted gallantly, but the kidnappers escaped through a Secondary school in Ilasa into the bush. But another gang resurfaced between Ayedun-Ilasa road and kidnapped three persons.
“A driver carrying some passengers who wanted to escape by force, had his car shot and two persons sustained fractures in their legs.
“Many people could have been kidnapped if not for the quick intervention of the soldiers, but three were taken away”, he said.
When contacted, the Police Public Relations Officer, Ekiti Command, ASP Sunday Abutu, confirmed the incident, saying four persons were abducted during the operation.
Abutu stated that the combined forces of the military men and the police rescued six men from the gunmen.
“The information we heard was that, four persons were abducted . But the security men responded swiftly to the situation and rescued six. We have begun investigation and we will try and ensure that the abductees are brought back safe and sound”, he said.