Two suspects who were almost lynched by a mob at Alakia-Adelubi Area of Ibadan for an alleged attempt to kidnap a nine-year-old girl was rescued by police operatives in Oyo State Police Command on Sunday.
According to the Nigerian Tribune Newspaper, the suspects, Kabiru Salam and Lukman Adisa, reportedly made the kidnap attempt when the girl, simply called Ope, was on her way to church with her mother.
Confirming the rescue by the police, the command’s spokesman, SP Adewale Osifeso told the Nigerian Tribune on Monday that the operatives who were on surveillance and patrol around Alakia Adelubi axis responded to a distress call at about 9:20am when they received information on the jungle justice about to be executed on the two suspects.
According to the PPRO, “preliminary investigations revealed that the girl was in the company of her mother, one Afolabi Modupe, and other siblings when the two suspects attempted pulling her from her mother’s grip.”
Stating that the suspects, who were first taken for immediate medical attention, had been kept in police custody, Osifeso added that investigations into the matter had commenced immediately.
He said that the state Commissioner of Police, Ngozi Onadeko, appealed to the citizenry not to take laws into their hands, with the assurances of a diligent and thorough investigation into the incident.
The PPRO also promised an update on the matter.
