The Edo State Police Command has arrested a suspected kidnapper linked to the abduction of three women in Ovia North-East Local Government Area and recovered the body of one of the victims.
The victims, identified as Mrs. Favour Nosakhare, 66, Mrs Emmanuel Annabel Osasere, 28, and Miss Rejoice Otikpere, 26, were abducted on May 9, 2026, when armed kidnappers invaded their residence in Iyowa Community and took them into a nearby forest.
According to the police, the kidnappers later contacted the victims’ family through a video call, during which the women were seen being flogged and tortured while ransom was demanded for their release.
The incident prompted an intensified rescue operation by operatives of the Command’s Violent Crime Response Unit (VCRU) in collaboration with the Police Drone Unit, which deployed tactical and technological resources, including aerial surveillance of forests and suspected criminal hideouts in Ovia North-East and surrounding areas.
Spokesperson of the Edo Police Command, Eno Ikioedem, said in a statement that operatives on May 19 busted the kidnapping gang’s hideout along a powerline corridor within the forest.
“The suspects engaged the police in a fierce gun duel but were overwhelmed by the superior firepower of the operatives and fled into the bush with gunshot injuries,” the statement said.
Items recovered at the scene included a blood-soaked jacket and expended AK-47 ammunition.
Further investigations led to the arrest of Musa Haruna, 23, who was found with a gunshot wound. Police described him as a member of a notorious kidnapping and armed robbery syndicate operating along the Benin-Lagos Road and Old Benin-Akure Road corridors.
During interrogation, Haruna reportedly confessed to participating in the abduction and subsequently led investigators to a forest in Ogwa Community, Ovia North-East Local Government Area.
There, on June 2, operatives recovered two decomposing bodies. One of the bodies was identified by family members as that of Mrs. Favour Nosakhare, one of the women abducted on May 9.
The police said efforts are ongoing to apprehend other members of the gang still at large.
Commissioner of Police in Edo State, Monday Agbonika, commended the VCRU and Drone Unit for their resilience, professionalism and dedication, which led to the breakthrough.
He appealed to residents to continue supporting the police with timely and credible information, assuring that the command remains committed to ensuring the safety of lives and property and bringing all members of the criminal syndicate to justice.
