The Osun State Police Command has rescued a kidnapped victim unharmed, recovered N2,217,800 suspected to be ransom proceeds and arrested a suspected kidnapper during a tactical operation aimed at tackling violent crime across the state.
The Commissioner of Police, Ibrahim Gotan, disclosed this on Wednesday during a press briefing in Osogbo, where he outlined recent achievements of the Command in its fight against kidnapping, cultism, ritual-related crimes and other criminal activities.
According to the police commissioner, “the victim, Haruna Yusuf, a 50-year-old Fulani herdsman, was abducted on 9 July 2026 from a remote settlement near Wasinmi Village along the Gbongan-Ife-Ibadan Road by four suspected kidnappers.”
He said police operatives, working alongside local vigilantes, immediately launched a search operation, combing nearby forests and surrounding routes before transferring the case to the Command’s Violent Crime Response Unit, VCRU, for tactical investigation.
Gotan explained that on July 12, operatives carried out an intelligence-led operation while closely monitoring the ransom payment process at Majeroku along the Ibadan-Ife Expressway.
He said, “The team successfully rescued the victim unhurt. The kidnappers, on sighting the operatives, opened fire and the police equally responded professionally, leading to a gun duel during which some of the suspected kidnappers sustained gunshot injuries, one was arrested, while others fled.”
The commissioner added that the injured suspect, identified as Usman Aliyu, 40 years, was taken to the UNIOSUN Teaching Hospital for treatment and was responding to medical care, while officers recovered N2,217,800 believed to be ransom proceeds.
He noted that efforts were continuing to
