Operatives of the Delta State Police Command have rescued a 27-year-old woman along with several other victims after raiding a suspected kidnappers’ hideout located within the Ibusa–Ogwashi-Uku forest axis.
The operation was launched following intelligence reports on the abduction of the woman, whose identity was not revealed, from the Ibusa community in Oshimili North Local Government Area.
Confirming the development, the Police Public Relations Officer, Bright Edafe, said in a statement issued in Warri on Monday that the victim had been held since March 12, 2026, at a building site near the Obosi River on the outskirts of the town.
According to the statement, the Commissioner of Police, Aina Adesola, ordered an immediate response upon receiving details of the incident, directing the Special Anti-Kidnapping and Cyber-Crime Squad to ensure the victims’ rescue and pursue those responsible.
“Acting on this directive, on March 19, 2026, at about 1500hrs, the Commander, Special Anti-Kidnapping and Cyber-Crime Squad, led operatives on the trail of the kidnappers,” Edafe said.
He explained that the suspects resisted arrest during the operation.
“Upon approaching their hideout, the kidnappers opened fire on the team, but the operatives responded with superior firepower, forcing the kidnappers to flee the scene and abandon their captives.”
The rescued victims were subsequently taken to a general hospital for treatment, while security operatives have launched a manhunt to apprehend the fleeing suspects.
In a separate development, police operatives also arrested a suspected armed robber linked to an attack on a Point of Sale operator in Boji Boji Owa.
The arrest followed a distress call received by the Divisional Police Officer in Owa-Oyibu, reporting that the suspect, identified as Sunday Blessing, alongside two accomplices, had robbed the operator of N600,000 at gunpoint along Diffrey Road near Ebu Owa Market.
Police said officers were swiftly deployed to the scene, leading to the arrest of Blessing, from whom a locally made Beretta pistol was recovered.
The suspect remains in custody as investigations continue, while efforts are ongoing to track down his fleeing accomplices.
