(Amotekun operatives. Photo by Premuim Times)
The Ondo State Security Network Agency, codenamed Amotekun, says it has rescued a kidn@p victim and arrested a father and his three sons at Oba-Ile, Akoko, in Akoko South West Local Government Area of the state.
Amotekun Corps Commander, Mr Adetunji Adeleye, made the disclosure while parading 28 suspects for kidn@p-related cases and 15 others for criminal offences on Tuesday in Akure.
He disclosed that Usman, 33; Wahab, 27; Yakubu, 18; and their father, Iliasu, 56, were arrested in Oba Akoko, Ondo State, adding that drugs, drinks, cigarettes and what looked like a camouflage used to cover the eyes of the kidn@pped victim were also recovered.
Adeleye explained that the suspects were arrested after the victim’s family reported the incident to the command.
The Amotekun commander, who said the victim was kidn@pped on his way to Oba Akoko, explained that the family arranged ransom without informing Amotekun.
He noted that despite the ransom payment, the kidn@ppers refused to release the victim and also threatened the family not to report the incident, which eventually brought the family to the Amotekun office, prompting the command to swing into action.
He said that in the end, a family, a father and three sons, were found to be directly involved, using cattle as cover, and that during the operation the kidn@ppers attacked the operatives, but the team succeeded in rescuing the victim.
Adeleye also said the kidn@ppers tortured the victim with knives and cutlasses on the head, and that the victim had been rushed to a nearby hospital.
According to him, Amotekun personnel recovered over 75 per cent of the ransom paid, stressing that the command does not encourage the payment of ransom.
He said since the money belongs to the family, it has been returned to them, noting that all the money recovered at the scene had been handed over to a member of the victim’s family for safekeeping, and was only brought out for display.