The Ondo State Security Network Agency, popularly known as the Amotekun Corps, has rescued two young Fulani herders who were abducted by suspected kidnappers in a forest along the Ondo–Edo boundary.
The victims, identified as Abubakar Umaru and Abdullahi Umaru, were reportedly tending cattle in Owo Local Government Area when they were seized by the kidnappers and taken into the forest.
Addressing journalists on Tuesday, the Commander of the Amotekun Corps, Adetunji Adeleye, said the rescue operation began after the parents of the victims reported that the boys had failed to return home with their cattle.
“The parents informed us that the children who went out to graze cattle had not returned. Our operatives immediately swung into action,” Adeleye said.
He explained that security operatives first recovered the cattle before intensifying efforts to locate the missing boys.
“We were able to retrieve all the cows. Thereafter, we launched a search for the two boys. When it became clear they had been kidnapped, our personnel pursued the kidnappers deep into the forest stretching between Ondo and Edo states, in an area known as Abuja Forest,” he stated.
According to Adeleye, the operatives eventually located the kidnappers’ hideout, forcing the suspects to flee as security personnel closed in on them.
“The abductors abandoned the victims and escaped after realising that our operatives had surrounded the area. The two boys were rescued safely,” he added.
The Amotekun commander commended members of the public for providing useful intelligence that contributed to the success of the operation.
He also stressed that the security outfit remained committed to protecting all residents irrespective of their ethnic background.
“The Ondo State Security Network Agency does not discriminate. Whether a criminal is Yoruba, Igbo, Hausa or Fulani, crime is crime, and we will treat offenders accordingly,” Adeleye said.
The rescue comes weeks after the corps arrested a 56-year-old man, Iliasu, alongside his three sons — Usman, Wahab and Yakubu — over the alleged abduction of a resident in Oba Akoko, Akoko South-West Local Government Area.
