Gunmen Abduct Retired Customs Officer, Kill Village Chief In Osun–Kwara Border Community

Gunmen have abducted a retired Nigeria Customs Service officer, Emmanuel Owolabi, during an attack on Ora, a border community between Osun and Kwara states, sparking panic among residents.

The incident occurred on Monday evening along Akisa Road in Ora, Osun State, a few minutes before 7 p.m., according to residents and family members.

Eyewitnesses said the assailants stormed the area, firing sporadic gunshots that forced residents to flee in different directions as the gunmen escaped into the bush with the victim.

The victim’s wife, Titilayo Owolabi, said her husband was abducted in front of their residence shortly after he visited her shop where she works.

She explained that Owolabi had come to her shop around 6:30 p.m. after she closed for the day and asked her to return home while he headed to another location in the town.

“I had finished cooking and was about to serve my children when I heard gunshots at the entrance of our compound,” she said.

“At first, I thought the sound was from hunters who sometimes pass through the area, but the shots became continuous. Later, I heard my husband’s voice outside our fence.”

Titilayo said she stepped outside, unaware that her husband was already being held by the gunmen.

“One of the gunmen jumped into our compound. They were speaking Hausa, so I spoke to him in Hausa and knelt down, but instead he started beating me and demanding money,” she narrated.

She added that the assailants continued firing shots before her husband was taken away on a motorcycle into the bush.

“The next thing I heard was the sound of a motorcycle conveying my husband towards the bush. After that, the gunmen jumped over the fence and fled,” she said, appealing for help to secure her husband’s release.

Community sources also disclosed that while escaping, the gunmen shot dead a village chief identified simply as Dennis, who was returning from his farm.

Confirming the incident on Tuesday, the
spokesperson for the Osun State Police Command, Abiodun Ojelabi, said security operatives had been deployed to comb the surrounding bushes.

“Immediately the incident happened, police operatives and other volunteers chased after the gunmen,” Ojelabi said.

He added that while one person was killed during the attack, the location where the village chief was shot falls within Kwara State.

“We are working hard to rescue the abducted victim,” he said.