Gunmen ∆bduct Osun Local Gov’t Council Vice Chairman Amid Rising Att∆cks, Violence

 

 

Gunmen Abduct Osun Local Gov’t Council Vice Chairman Amid Rising Attacks, Violence

The command’s spokesperson, Abiodun Ojelabi, confirmed the incident on Wednesday, saying security agencies had launched efforts to rescue the local government official.

The Osun State Police Command has confirmed the abduction of the Vice Chairman of the Ifedayo Local Government Area, Debo Farounbi, following an attack by armed men on Ora community, a border town along the Osun-Kwara boundary.

The command’s spokesperson, Abiodun Ojelabi, confirmed the incident on Wednesday, saying security agencies had launched efforts to rescue the local government official.

“One person was abducted. He is a local government vice chairman, Hon. Debo Farounbi. Immediately the incident happened, the military, police and others responded. Efforts are in place to rescue the man. It is abduction until we are able to prove that it is a case of kidnapping,” Ojelabi said.

Farounbi was reportedly abducted around 10pm on Tuesday when heavily armed gunmen stormed the community, firing sporadically into the air and causing panic among residents.

According to community sources the attackers initially seized four people, including Farounbi and two Fulani women, before attempting to move them into the bush through routes leading toward neighbouring Kwara State.

However, a combined response by military personnel and local vigilantes reportedly led to a fierce gun battle with the attackers.

According to residents, the resistance forced the gunmen to abandon three of the captives while fleeing with Farounbi.

A resident who spoke on condition of anonymity due to security concerns said the community was thrown into fear by the attack.

“Four people, two Fulani women and two men including the Ifedayo Local Government Vice Chairman, Debo Farounbi, were abducted. But the resistance put up by the military made the perpetrators abandon three people.

“They however went away with Farounbi. Our people did not sleep throughout the night. We are in serious fear. The incident happened around 10pm on Tuesday,” the resident said as quoted by The PUNCH.

The latest abduction has heightened concerns over growing insecurity in Ora, a community that has repeatedly come under attack from suspected kidnappers and bandits operating around the Osun-Kwara border corridor.

Residents told SaharaReporters that Farounbi’s abduction marks the third major kidnapping incident recorded in the community within the last seven months.

In December 2025, a retired Customs officer, Emmanuel Owolabi, was abducted by suspected bandits in the same community.

Owolabi reportedly spent nearly four weeks in captivity before regaining freedom after an undisclosed ransom was paid. He was later released in a community in neighbouring Kwara State.

Barely two months later, on February 1, 2026, suspected bandits again invaded Ora through the Kwara boundary and abducted two residents.

The victims were also held for about four weeks before they were eventually released.

The recurring attacks have sparked fears among residents, many of whom say the community is becoming increasingly unsafe due to its proximity to forested border areas allegedly exploited by criminal gangs.

Community leaders have accused authorities of failing to establish sufficient security measures despite repeated incidents.

Speaking on the worsening situation, a community leader identified simply as Thomas warned that continued insecurity could trigger a mass exodus of residents from the town.

Similarly, a market leader, Mrs Alarape, lamented that many residents had already begun relocating due to fears of further attacks.

“People are leaving the town. And more people may leave unless something urgent is done to secure us. The invaders are coming through our boundary with Kwara State,” she said.

The latest attack adds to growing concerns about the spread of kidnapping and banditry activities across communities located along state boundaries in the South-West, where criminal groups have increasingly exploited difficult terrain and porous border routes to evade security operatives.

As of the time of filing this report, security agencies had yet to announce any breakthrough in efforts to rescue the abducted vice chairman.