The Edo State Police Command has arrested 11 suspected kidnappers and recovered arms and N209,700 in cash during coordinated security operations across the state.
The Edo State Police Public Relations Officer, ASP Eno Ikoedem, announced this via a statement issued on Tuesday, January 13, 2026.
Ikoedem said the arrests followed a reorganisation of the Ekpoma Division ordered by the Edo State Commissioner of Police, Monday Agbonika, with CSP Tomofe Nwabueze deployed as the new Divisional Police Officer (DPO).
Ikoedem said the new DPO swiftly responded to a reported kidnapping along Old INEC Road, Ekpoma, on Monday, January 12.
He stated that investigations later revealed the incident was a case of self-kidnapping.
He noted that an 18-year-old suspect, Obehi Odine, was arrested and confessed to staging the abduction in an attempt to extort N10 million.
Ikoedem said in a separate operation in Ubiaja, security operatives uncovered a suspected kidnapping camp during a joint bush-combing exercise involving the police, the Nigerian military, and the Edo State Security Corps.
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Ikoedem stated: “A concealed forest enclave identified by the drone squadron through intelligence generated from air surveillance as a suspected kidnapping and logistics base, was stormed.
“This resulted in the arrest of 11
male suspects believed to be members of an organized kidnapping syndicate.”
The police spokesperson listed exhibits recovered from the suspects to
include 24 Dane guns, 17 cutlasses, three battle axes, gun powder, torchlights, mobile phones, solar panels, assorted charms, one Daylong motorcycle, and the sum of N209,700 cash, among others.
He quoted Agbonika as warning residents against making false kidnapping reports, stressing that such actions waste security resources and create unnecessary panic.
He reaffirmed the command’s commitment to technology-driven, intelligence-led policing and urged the public to continue providing credible information to support ongoing security efforts across Edo State.
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