Nine rescued as troops arrest ‘two kidnappers’ in Benue

Troops of Operation Whirl Stroke (OPWS), in collaboration with the police and other security agencies, have rescued nine kidnap victims and arrested two suspects in Benue state.

Sunday Igbinomwanhia, OPWS commander, announced the development on Thursday while speaking to reporters in Makurdi.

He said the troops rescued the victims and arrested the suspects during an operation on Tuesday at Owukpa forest in Ogbadibo LGA of the state.

Igbinomwanhia added that the rescued victims comprised of eight females and a male.

He said the operation followed the report of kidnap of passengers transiting in a commercial bus along Otukpo – Enugu Road on January 11.

“During the firefight, the kidnappers fled their hideout due to our superior fire power, abandoning their victims in the process,” NAN quoted Igbinomwanhia as saying.

“Some of the items recovered at the scene, include one AK 47 rifle and 10 mobile phones.

“The rescued victims were immediately moved to the sector headquarters for first aid attention.”

He added that the victims have all been reunited with their families.

Igbinomwahia said the suspects, and all recovered items during the raid, have been handed over to the police for further action.

The commander thanked residents of the state for providing information that led to the discovery of the hideout of the suspects and the subsequent rescue of the victims.

He also urged residents of neighbouring states — Nasarawa and Taraba — to continue to make use of the emergency numbers provided by the command towards providing credible information on suspicious criminal activities.