The wife of Oniba of Ibaland, Oba Yushau Goriola Oseni, Olori Nafisat and his daughter, Ramota have narrated how the 73-year-old Oba, was abducted on Saturday night, Nigerian Tribune has reported
The monarch had reportedly just returned from a social engagement on Saturday night, when the gunmen, numbering over 15 stormed the palace and abducted him.
One of the gunmen was said to be dressed in Nigerian Army uniform and another one in Navy uniform with most of them putting on masks.
Olori Nafisat, who was shot in the leg said “The monarch and I were both in his room when we heard the noise. We left in order to caution the children, but unfortunately we met the gunmen who were already at the entrance of the living room.
“They were shouting, ‘Where is the king?’’ Immediately they saw both of us they asked me if the person behind me is the monarch and he answered. Immediately, they left the children to abduct him. When I realised that they came for him, I tried preventing them, but one of the gunmen hit me on the neck and I fell down. Before I could regain consciousness, they had whisked him away from the living room. They also went away with about five of our mobile phones.
“The younger wife went after the two abductors at the entrance, begging them to spare her husband. It was in the process she was shot, the palace security guard who was also preventing the kidnappers from taking the monarch away was shot and died on the spot.”
According to the daughter, the security man was shot for daring to stop the gunmen from taking away the monarch.
A resident of Victory Estate, also in Iba, Olatunbosun, told Lagos Metro that the monarch was the fourth person to be abducted in the last one week.
There is however, a growing fear at the palace of the monarch following reported threats from the abductors that they were still coming to abduct more people.
Meanwhile, a combined team of military men, Rapid Response Squad (RRS) and Marine Police is patrolling the waterways around Iba, Itokin and Igando in search of the monarch.
The image maker in charge of the state police command, Dolapo Badmos, while speaking on the arrest said “the kidnappers are militants and it was because pipeline vandalism had been curtailed that they resulted into kidnapping.”
She added that, “We have been arresting kidnappers and this will not be different. The command is working with the Ogun police command to ensure that the issue of kidnapping is nipped in the bud in both states.”