Troops of the Nigerian Army under the 3rd Division and Operation Enduring Peace (OPEP) have successfully rescued a retired senior military officer, Colonel Joseph Ajanaku (rtd), from kidnappers in Plateau State.
The Acting Deputy Director of Army Public Relations, 3rd Division, Lieutenant Colonel Aliyu Danja, confirmed the development on Tuesday in Jos.
“I can confirm that our troops rescued the senior officer in the early hours of the evening. He has been taken to our medical facility for medical checks,” Danja said.
According to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), a credible Army Headquarters source disclosed that Colonel Ajanaku was abducted at about 12:45 a.m. on January 5 from his residence opposite the Salvation Army Church along Rukuba Road in Bassa Local Government Area of Plateau State.
The source said troops from Sectors 1 and 3 of Operation Enduring Peace swiftly responded to the incident and trailed the kidnappers along their escape route through the Wildlife Park axis.
The troops, working in collaboration with operatives of the Defence Intelligence Agency (DIA) and local vigilantes, conducted sustained search-and-rescue operations around caves and rocky high grounds suspected to be criminal hideouts.
It was further revealed that at about 2:00 p.m., the kidnappers contacted the victim’s wife and demanded a ransom of ₦200 million, while threatening to kill the retired officer if rescue efforts continued.
Following the threats, the source said the military adopted a covert operational strategy, which eventually led to success.
“The covert approach paid off, as Colonel Ajanaku was rescued at about 5:30 p.m. on the same day at the outskirts of the Rafiki axis in Bassa LGA,” the source said.
The rescued officer is currently undergoing medical evaluation at the OPSH Medical Centre and will be debriefed to provide actionable intelligence for follow-up operations, the source added.