Felix Omoh-Asun in Benin
In a major operation, the Edo State Police Command and other security agencies in the state arrested a total of 113 suspected kidnappers across the Edo Central Senatorial District.
The intelligence-driven operation, code named “Zango,” carried out in the early hours of Thursday, made a breakthrough in dislodging kidnappers at the fringes of Agbede and Iruekpen axis of the state.
A statement by the command spokesperson, Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) Eno Ikoedem, said the command, under the leadership of the State Commissioner of Police, CP Monday Agbonika, launched a massive joint security, sweeping across strategic locations in Edo Central.
“Acting on credible intelligence that ransom proceeds from kidnapping activities were being discreetly received and coordinated at identified “Zangos” in Agbede and Iruekpen, the Commissioner of Police personally led a formidable joint task force comprising operatives of the Nigeria Police Force, the Nigerian Army, the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), vigilante groups, and local hunters in a synchronized enforcement action.
“Coordinated raids on the identified Zango settlements in Agbede and Iruekpen were carried out where actionable intelligence indicated that suspected kidnappers and their collaborators converge to receive ransom payments, regroup, and blend with unsuspecting members of the public, the statement disclosed.
The raids yielded a harvest of arrest of a total of 113 suspects.
All suspects are currently undergoing thorough profiling to ascertain their level of involvement.
Those found culpable will be made to face the full weight of the law.
The Commissioner of Police has again reiterated that the command’s onslaught against kidnapping organised networks will remain relentless and uncompromising.
He stressed the police will not only target armed elements in the forests but will equally intensify efforts to degrade their financial and human support systems across the State.
He further called on residents to remain vigilant and continue to provide timely and credible information to security agencies, assuring that all intelligence received will be treated with the highest level of confidentiality.
“The Edo State Police Command remains firm, proactive, and battle-ready to safeguard lives and property. The warning is unequivocal: there will be no sanctuary for kidnappers or their collaborators anywhere in Edo State,” the statement declared.
