Police yesterday confirmed abduction of two sisters – Pastor Omobola Adepoju and Mrs. Abiola Olukotun – on a farm in Ibadan, Oyo State.
The sisters, who were abducted on Monday, are daughters of the late Chief Emiola Adesina, former Director of Sports, Western Region, who was also the proprietor of Subuola Memorial Nursery/ Primary School, Ibadan. The state Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), SP Olugbenga Fadeyi, confirmed the abduction.
He said: “They were kidnapped yesterday (Monday) on a farm near Badeku in Ibadan. The Commissioner of Police, Mr. Shina Olukolu, gave a matching order to burst the crime. “As we speak, the Anti-Kidnapping Squad, the Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS), the Special Tactical Team, the Police Tactical Team, Operation Puff Adder, the IGP Tactical Team and the Federal SARS have all been deployed to the area. “They have cordoned off the area as we speak.
They are carrying out a massive manhunt for the kidnappers in order to secure their release. I spoke with the OC/Anti-Kidnapping and he said they were combing the bush and the adjoining communities in an effort to secure their release.”
A family source said one of the sisters came from the United States. “Omobola came in from Atlanta and was with her sister on her farm on Ife Road in Ibadan where they were both kidnapped on Monday. The kidnappers have called the family to ask for N100 million,” the source said. Husband of one of the victims, Mr. Kitolu Olukotun, said the abductors were six and that three of them were Fulani herders. He said: “My wife and sister-in-law went to the farm in the afternoon on Monday.
Suddenly, the kidnappers emerged from the bush. According to one of my boys on the farm, they were six in number. “Three of them are Fulani while the remaining three are Yoruba. One of them was carrying an AK47 rifle which they shot sporadically in the air. They shot at the tyre of the vehicle and also fired a shot at the driver of our customers. “They ransacked the vehicle probably looking for something.
After that, they marched my wife and the sister-in-law through the bush path. When they called me, they demanded N100 million. But, I told them I don’t have such money; I told them to accept N1 million but they disagreed saying, where? They then refused to speak with me.
They have been threatening my wife. They insisted they would not take anything less than N20 million.” Meanwhile, in a statement yesterday, the police warned against the indiscriminate construction of unmanned community gates and careless patronage of suspicious commercial motorcyclists by residents in view of the growing spate of insecurity. The Police Commissioner, Olukolu, advised all and sundry to be circumspect in the construction and installation of unmanned security gates in their environment.