The Oyo State Police Command has launched a coordinated security operation to rescue a school headmaster, Owoade Mathew, who was kidnapped in the Igbojaye community of Oorelope Local Government Area.
The command also said it had begun a full-scale investigation into the incident while clarifying that the victim was abducted on his farm, not within a school as reported by some media outlets.
The Punch had earlier reported that the 60-year-old headmaster of Nomadic Basic School, Igbojaye, Budo Aare, popularly known as Onaiye, was kidnapped by gunmen who later demanded a N30 million ransom.
In a statement issued on Monday, the Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Ayanlade Olayinka, said the command received a distress report at about 9:50 a.m. on Sunday from the Officer-in-Charge of the Igbojaye Police Outpost after the victim failed to return home from his farm.
According to the statement, preliminary investigations revealed that Mathew left for his farm along the Igbojaye–Budo Aare Farm Road at about 4 p.m. on Saturday, July 11, 2026.
Concerned by his absence, family members organised a search and later discovered his Bajaj motorcycle abandoned at the farm in the early hours of Sunday.
The police added that the victim’s mobile phone was later used to contact his relatives, with the caller informing them that Mathew had been abducted.
Addressing reports linking the incident to a school, the command said such claims were false.
It read, “The Command wishes to clarify that, contrary to inaccurate reports circulating in some sections of the media, the victim was abducted while on his farm and not within the premises of any school. Members of the public are therefore urged to disregard the misleading reports and rely only on information disseminated through official channels of the Oyo State Police Command.”
Following the report, the Commissioner of Police, Abimbola Ayodeji Olugbenga, directed the immediate deployment of a joint rescue team comprising police personnel, Amotekun Corps operatives, local vigilantes and hunters.
The security team has since commenced intensive searches of nearby forests in an effort to locate and rescue the victim.
The operation is also being supported by the command’s Anti-Kidnapping Squad and other tactical units working alongside relevant security agencies to ensure the victim’s safe return and apprehend those behind the abduction.
Olugbenga reaffirmed the command’s resolve to combat kidnapping and other violent crimes across the state, urging residents to continue providing useful information that could aid security operations.
“The Oyo State Police Command reiterates its unwavering commitment to the protection of lives and property and will continue to work collaboratively with sister security agencies and community stakeholders to sustain peace and public safety across the State,” the statement added.
