RESIDENTS of Ora, a community located along the Osun–Kwara boundary, were thrown into panic on Monday evening following an attack by suspected gunmen that left a village head dead and a retired Customs officer abducted.
Reports gathered yesterday revealed that the assailants killed the village head, identified simply as Dennis, and kidnapped a retired Customs officer, Emmanuel Owolabi, during the incident.
Eyewitnesses said the attack caused widespread fear, forcing residents to flee in different directions as the gunmen escaped into the bush with their captive.
The victim’s wife, Titilayo, told journalists that the abduction occurred just before 7pm in front of their residence on Akisa Road in Ora, Osun State.
She explained that her husband had visited her shop shortly after she closed for the day and later headed to another part of the town, while she returned home to prepare dinner.
According to her, she was about to serve food to their children when she heard gunshots near the entrance of their compound. Initially, she assumed the sounds were from hunters who occasionally passed through the area, but the gunfire soon intensified.
She said she later heard her husband calling from outside the fence and stepped out to investigate, unaware that he was already in the custody of the attackers.
“One of the gunmen jumped into our compound. They were young boys and were speaking Hausa, so I knelt and spoke to him in Hausa, but instead of responding, he started beating me,” she recounted.
She added that the gunman demanded money while shots were being fired intermittently. Moments later, she heard the sound of a motorcycle as her husband was taken toward the bush. The two gunmen in their compound then fled by jumping over the fence.
Appealing for help, Titilayo said her husband is a retired Customs officer and called on security agencies and members of the public to assist in ensuring his safe return.
Community sources, who requested anonymity due to the sensitive nature of the incident, disclosed that while fleeing the area, the gunmen shot and killed a village chief, Dennis, who was returning from his farm.
Confirming the incident, the Osun State Police Command spokesperson, Abiodun Ojelabi, said security operatives had been deployed to comb the surrounding bushes in pursuit of the attackers.
He added that while one person was confirmed dead, the killing did not occur within Osun State, noting that the location where the village head was shot falls within Kwara State.
“We are working assiduously to rescue the abducted victim,” Ojelabi said, assuring residents that efforts were ongoing to apprehend the perpetrators.