The Kwara State Police Command revealed that gunmen kidnapped ten individuals from the Yashikira Emir’s castle in the state’s Baruten Local Government Area.
Adetoun Ejire-Adeyemi, the state’s command spokesperson, said in a statement on Monday that the gunmen also stormed the Yashikira police station at 2 a.m.
“The armed criminals, in a coordinated and desperate assault at about 0200hrs, simultaneously attacked the Yashikira Police Divisional Headquarters and the Palace of the Emir of Yashikira,” the statement reads.
“During the attack, part of the palace was set ablaze, while ten people were abducted and taken to an unknown destination. However, the attack on the police station was successfully repelled by police operatives on duty.”
Following the incident, the statement added that the Commissioner of Police, CP Ojo Adekimi, has ordered an intelligence-led tactical operation involving the police, military, forest guards, vigilantes and other security agencies to comb surrounding forests and suspected criminal hideouts in a bid to rescue the victims and apprehend the perpetrators.
The police commissioner assured residents that the command would not succumb to threats or intimidation by criminal elements operating in any part of the state.
“These criminals have declared war against peace-loving citizens, and we are fully prepared to hunt them down relentlessly. We will deploy everything within our operational capacity to smoke them out of hiding, dismantle their networks, rescue all abducted victims and ensure they face the full wrath of the law,” Adekimi said.
The command also assured residents of Yashikira and other parts of Kaiama LGA that security operations had been intensified across vulnerable communities, with surveillance, intelligence gathering and bush-combing operations ongoing.
This latest incident comes after terrorists during church Saturday night vigil killed three persons and abducted 15 worshippers in an attack at Ori-Oke Ajaiye in the outskirts of Ikiran village of Ekiti Local Government Area of Kwara state.
