The Ondo State Police Command has arrested a suspected kidnapper, Adegbenro Adeola, after a dramatic chase that led to the rescue of an abducted victim in Akure, the Ondo State capital.
The command’s spokesperson, DSP Abayomi Jimoh, disclosed this in a statement on Wednesday, noting that the suspect is part of a gang that had been terrorising parts of the city.
According to the statement, the incident occurred on Tuesday, May 5, 2026, when operatives on routine patrol along the Oba-Ile axis acted on intelligence about a distress situation involving a man inside a moving vehicle.
The officers reportedly spotted a red Toyota Camry in which a victim was heard shouting for help.
“Upon receipt of the report, the operatives swiftly mobilised and pursued the suspected vehicle,” the statement said.
During the chase, the suspects reportedly forced the victim, later identified as Kayode Alaba, out of the moving vehicle in an attempt to escape arrest.
The police team, however, continued the pursuit and succeeded in arresting Adeola, while other members of the gang fled the scene.
The vehicle used in the operation was also recovered.
Preliminary investigations revealed that the victim had earlier been abducted from his residence along Irese Road, Akure, before the police intervention.
Jimoh said the victim has since been rescued and is receiving medical attention, while the arrested suspect has provided useful information to assist ongoing investigations.
The case has been transferred to the Violent Crime Response Unit in Akure for further investigation and efforts to apprehend fleeing accomplices.
Several people were k!lled and others sustained injuries when gunmen attacked villagers during the mass burial of six victims of last night attack in Nding community, Fan District, Barkin Ladi Local Government Area of Plateau State.
LIB reported that six people, including a family of five, were k!lled in the village on Tuesday night, May 5, 2026.
The latest incident occurred on Wednesday afternoon, May 6.
A member of the community, Weng Christopher, said the assailants stormed the area and opened fire on unsuspecting victims.
It was further gathered that the gunmen, who were watching the burial ceremony from the hills surrounding the community, suddenly descended and attacked them as they were digging the grave.
An eyewitness, Masara Kim, a journalist, said that about five communities were experiencing simultaneous attacks by the terrorists.
He said that the mourners had just dug about a few metres before the terrorists struck, and they had to hurriedly dump the bodies into the shallow grave and run for their lives.
“So right now, there is an ongoing attack, a massive attack, actually, in communities 20 miles south of Jos. We are told the communities are more than five right now that are experiencing simultaneous attacks,” he narrated.
“Right under my eyes, I saw a man fall after he was shot by a terrorist, who emerged from the surrounding hills and started shooting and advancing in the direction of the community where I was, where we were observing, witnessing the burial of seven people who were k!lled last night in a village located in the Fan district of Barkin Ladi local council.
“So while the mass burial was ongoing, we got information. Actually, before the mass burials commenced, while locals were digging the mass graves for the seven people, we got information that the terrorists were advancing. They were mobilising to launch an attack.
“So the mass grave was just a little below two feet, but they had to abandon the digging and just dump the bodies in them.
“There weren’t any official funeral rites yet. You know, there was just a prayer, very brief, and they had to just be buried. And moments later, there were incoming gunshots. And right in front of me, a man fell. He was one of the civilian defenders who were managing to protect the defenceless civilians using homemade pipe guns and hunting rifles.
“Eventually, all of us were overwhelmed, and the entire community was overrun. And we had to run for our dear lives.
“The video you saw, the first video, was me just standing in the outskirts of the community, just recording what was going on. We could hear gunshots in the distance, but we didn’t realise how close it already was.
“By the time we realised how close it was, people were already falling, and they had already come too close, and we had to run and abandon our vehicle in the centre of the community.
“I just made it out of safety, but for those that are left behind, they’re going to have mercy on their souls.”
Kim said he couldn’t ascertain the casualty figure, as the situation was very tense when he left the area.
The publicity secretary of the Berom Youth-Moulders Association, Rwang Tengwom, who confirmed the incident to Sun Nigeria described the situation as terrible.
Tengwom, who appeared panic-stricken, said he learnt that the BYM president was trapped in the area and they’re racing to the scene to have him rescued.
“I am on a bike now to the place. The situation is quite bad, and we learnt that our president is trapped. We’re going there to rescue him by all mean,” he added.
The Cross River State Police Command has confirmed the arrest of two serving police officers who were intercepted with firearms and ammunition amid the ongoing communal crisis between Ugep and Idomi communities.
The clarification followed a viral video circulating on social media alleging that the officers were arrested in connection with the conflict.
In a statement issued on Wednesday, the Police Public Relations Officer of the Cross River State Command, Eitokpah Akata, said the suspects were intercepted during a joint stop-and-search operation involving police officers and personnel of the Nigerian Army in Biase Local Government Area.
“The Command wishes to clarify that the incident occurred on 5th May 2026, when two suspects riding on a motorcycle were intercepted during a routine stop-and-search operation conducted jointly by men of the Nigeria Police Force and personnel of the Nigerian Army in Biase Local Government Area of Cross River State,” the statement read.
According to the police, preliminary findings showed that the suspects are serving members of the police force attached to the Akwa Ibom State Police Command.
“Preliminary findings indicate that the two suspects seen in the viral video are serving members of the Nigeria Police Force attached to the Akwa Ibom State Police Command and were found in possession of firearms and live ammunition at the time of their interception,” the statement added.
The command disclosed that the officers were immediately taken into custody and transferred to the State Criminal Investigation Department in Calabar for further investigation.
“The suspects were immediately taken into custody and subsequently transferred to the State Criminal Investigation Department, Calabar, where a full-scale investigation is currently ongoing,” Akata stated.
The Commissioner of Police in Cross River State, Rashid Afegbua, has reportedly ordered a comprehensive investigation into the matter.
“The Commissioner of Police, Cross River State Command, CP Rashid B. Afegbua, has ordered a comprehensive investigation to determine the motive, intent, and full circumstances surrounding the suspects’ actions,” the statement said.
The command also assured residents that any individual found culpable would face the law regardless of status or affiliation.
“The Command assures members of the public that no individual found wanting, regardless of status or affiliation, will be shielded from the full weight of the law,” the police added.
A 37-year-old man, Ziaulihak Zakari, popularly known as Abuja, has allegedly confessed to receiving N500,000 to carry out an acid attack on a female spa worker in the Lakowe area of Lagos State.
PUNCH Metro reports that the victim, Olorunseunfunmi Awosogbon, sustained severe injuries to her head, chest and hands during the attack, which occurred on October 25, 2025.
Awosogbon had reportedly honoured a home service request booked through the spa where she worked. The appointment was scheduled at Lakowe Golf Gate, near Utmost Care Hospital, where the incident took place.
Findings, however, indicate that she was not the intended target.
Her employer, Olorunmaye Ifeoluwa, told PUNCH Metro that the attack was linked to a dispute involving a former relationship between her and another suspect alleged to have hired Zakari.
She said the relationship, which lasted a few months, was characterised by disagreements before it ended.
Zakari and one Owolabi Daniel have since been arraigned before a Magistrate Court in Ebute-Metta on charges bordering on conspiracy, threat to life and causing bodily harm.
In a video obtained by our correspondent on Thursday, Zakari—who was reportedly arrested on March 19, 2026—admitted he was recruited for the attack but mistakenly assaulted the wrong person.
“There is a man named Daniel who contacted me through a security guard and told me he had a job. When he said he needed someone to pour acid on a person, I agreed,” he said.
“I couldn’t carry it out the first time because I was scared. When another opportunity came, I mistook the target and attacked the wrong person.
“The acid was procured by the man and the security guard. I was paid N500,000 for the job and gave the security guard N50,000 for linking me up,” he added, expressing regret over his actions.
According to the charge sheet, the suspects allegedly conspired in October 2025 at Lakowe, Ibeju-Lekki, to commit felony, including threats to life and causing harm, contrary to Section 411 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State, 2015.
It further alleged that Owolabi threatened Ifeoluwa’s life via WhatsApp messages, an offence punishable under Section 232 of the same law.
Zakari was also accused of unlawfully wounding Awosogbon by pouring a corrosive substance on her, contrary to Section 246 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State, 2015.
