Amotekun arrests 10 suspected criminals in Ondo

The Ondo State Security Network Agency, operating as the Amotekun Corps, has apprehended 10 individuals suspected of various criminal activities, including kidnapping, theft, and burglary, across the state. Among those arrested are two suspects linked to the abduction of a woman and her two children, who were successfully rescued by Amotekun operatives in the Osi/Isinigbo area of Akure North Local Government Area.

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We are parading a total of 10 suspects, two of whom are kidnappers. The amazing part of this struggle is that the Fulani men who had joined us, as you can see, were the people who assisted us in identifying the kidnappers among them, so that we would not generalise.

Parading the suspects at the corps' headquarters in Akure, the state commander, Akogun Adetunji Adeleye, detailed their alleged offenses. He highlighted the crucial assistance provided by members of the Fulani community in identifying the kidnappers, emphasizing that this collaboration helped avoid broad generalizations against the community. A locally made firearm was recovered from one of the suspects.

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We were able to recover a locally made weapon, a locally made gun, from one of them.

One suspect confessed to multiple kidnapping activities, with his latest intended victim being his former employer. He allegedly planned the kidnapping by entering the woman's house, but her husband and others woke up, prompting the suspect to flee. Following this, Amotekun operatives and Fulani community members cordoned off the area and apprehended him. The second suspect reportedly confessed to being a serial kidnapper operating in the Akure North axis.

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One of the suspects confessed to having been involved in several kidnapping activities and said his latest victim was to have been his former boss in Molege, Owo.

Adeleye further elaborated on the breakdown of arrests, identifying Gambo, 27, who was negotiating ransom, and Murtala, 19, arrested with a locally made firearm, as the two involved in the kidnapping. Murtala was allegedly targeting his former boss's wife. Mustafa was arrested for specializing in motorcycle theft and burglarizing places of worship, with his latest act involving a church in Elegbeka. Joseph, 25, and Friday, 20, were arrested for stealing and reselling stolen motorcycles, with one accomplice involved in selling a new motorcycle for N70,000.

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Starting with the two kidnappers, Gambo, 27, was negotiating and discussing ransom, not knowing that Amotekun men and some of our informants were around. We were able to arrest him eventually behind Shasha in Akure. Murtala, 19, was arrested with the locally made firearm and other weapons, and we equally apprehended him. He was the person who was coming to kidnap the wife of his former boss, whom he had previously worked for.