Police Nab Suspected Kidnap Kingpin Who Escaped Gun Battle With Bullet Wounds

The Ondo State police have announced that they have apprehended a suspected kidnapping ringleader, Abdullahi Lawal, at Aderoju Camp in Ugbe-Akoko, within the Akoko Local Government Area of the state.

The spokesperson of the Ondo State Police Command, Abayomi Jimoh, disclosed this in a statement made available to newsmen in Akure on Tuesday.

He explained that the suspect was arrested following sustained intelligence gathering and coordinated operational strategies.

Jimoh stated that Lawal had been identified as the mastermind behind the kidnapping of one Aremu Tijani, which occurred on August 18, 2025, at the victim’s bush farm in the Ikare-Akoko axis.

“Following sustained intelligence gathering and coordinated operational strategies, operatives of the Command have successfully arrested one Abdullahi Lawal of Aderoju Camp, Ugbe Akoko Town, who has been identified as the mastermind of a kidnapping incident involving one Aremu Tijani that occurred on August 18, 2025, at the victim’s bush farm in the Ikare-Akoko axis,” he said.

The police spokesperson added that security operatives had earlier engaged members of the criminal gang in a tactical operation, which led to the neutralisation of three suspects and the arrest of four others.

However, the gang leader, Abdullahi Lawal, managed to escape from the scene at the time, despite sustaining gunshot injuries during the encounter with police operatives.

Jimoh noted that detectives later intensified efforts and eventually tracked down the suspect in Ikare-Akoko

After months of sustained intelligence-led operations and coordinated efforts by security personnel, the suspect was successfully apprehended by police operatives in Ikare-Akoko.

“He has since made useful confessional statements and will be charged to court,” the force spokesman added.