Oyo State Police Command has arrested four suspected members of a kidnapping syndicate linked to the abduction of the younger sister of former Minister of Power, Adebayo Adelabu, and her twin sons, while two other suspects were killed during a rescue operation in Ibadan.
Gatekeepers News reports that the victims, identified as Olaide John-Paul and her 11-year-old twin sons, Peter and Paul, were abducted on June 3 while she was taking the children to school in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital.
They were rescued unharmed three days later during a coordinated operation involving operatives of the Force Intelligence Department–Intelligence Response Team (FID-IRT) and the Oyo State Police Command.
According to police spokesperson Ayanlade Olayinka, investigations revealed that the kidnappers had carried out weeks of surveillance on the family before striking.
The gang reportedly monitored the family’s daily routines, photographed their vehicles, tracked the schools attended by the children and even attempted to recruit an insider within the household to aid the operation.
Police said the breakthrough came after the arrest of Wale Abolalewa, also known as “Oloro,” a suspect already on the security watchlist. His arrest led investigators to other members of the syndicate, including Dare Oyedele, popularly known as “Solution,” who was described as a key operative within the gang.
Acting on intelligence, security operatives stormed the gang’s hideout in the Lado community of the Ayegun area of Ibadan on Friday evening. During the operation, a suspect identified as Kelechi allegedly opened fire on the advancing officers, leading to a gun battle in which he and another gang member were killed.
Two additional suspects, Semiu Ishola, 39, and Adeyemi Ayobami, 35, were arrested for allegedly helping the gang use the hideout. Security operatives recovered three pump-action rifles, 14 live cartridges, a Toyota Corolla allegedly used in the operation, face masks, a battle axe, a hammer, suspected hard drugs and charms.
The police said efforts are ongoing to track down other members of the syndicate who escaped during the raid, some of whom are believed to have sustained gunshot wounds.
Authorities have appealed to hospitals and healthcare providers to report anyone seeking treatment for suspicious gunshot injuries.
