Suspected bandits have kidnapped a 42-year-old Indian national, Renjith Pillai, while he was inspecting crops at an agricultural farm in Ogunmakin Village, Ibadan the Oyo State.
According to intelligence sources quoted by security analyst and counter-insurgency expert, Zagazola Makama, on Sunday, the incident occurred at about 1:00 p.m. on January 16 at Aqua Triton Company farm, where about ten armed men stormed the premises.
It was gathered that during the attack, four personnel of the Police Mobile Force (PMF) were on guard duty.
One of the officers, Inspector Imoobe Prester, was said to have confronted the assailants and engaged them in a gun battle in an effort to stop the abduction.
The sources further revealed that, Inspector Prester was shot by the attackers, who fled into the surrounding bush with the abducted expatriate and the officer’s AK-47 rifle. The wounded officer was rushed for medical treatment but was later confirmed dead.
Following the incident, a joint security team comprising operatives from the Idi-Ayure Police Division, PMF personnel, the command’s anti-kidnapping squad, other tactical units, as well as local hunters and vigilantes, was deployed to the area to comb nearby bushes in search of the suspects and to recover the stolen firearm.
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Sources said intelligence from villagers and farm workers is being leveraged to track down the attackers.
The remains of the slain officer have been deposited at the Adeoyo Hospital morgue along Ring Road, Ibadan, for preservation and autopsy.
Police said investigations are ongoing and appealed to members of the public to provide credible information that could aid the rescue of the abducted expatriate and the arrest of those responsible for the attack.