The Ekiti State Police Command has recorded a major breakthrough in its fight against violent crimes with the arrest of eight suspected members of a notorious gang accused of killings, kidnapping, and unlawful possession of firearms in different parts of the state.
The Public Relations Officer of the Command, Superintendent of Police (SP), Abutu Sunday, confirmed the development in a statement released on Sunday, August 24, 2025.
He explained that the arrests followed weeks of painstaking intelligence operations carried out by operatives of the Rapid Response Squad (RRS), who tracked down the suspects one after the other.
According to the police spokesperson, investigations linked the suspects to a brutal attack that occurred on May 7, 2025, at Isah Camp in Odo Ayedun-Ekiti, Ikole Local Government Area.
On that night, at about 10:00 p.m., the armed gang, numbering close to ten men, stormed the camp and opened fire on the occupants.
In the process, a victim identified as Mohammodu Ibrahim was shot dead on the spot, while four other residents were abducted.
Another victim, Ibrahim Baba, who was among those kidnapped, was later killed by the gang even after his relatives had paid a ransom for his release.
“This shows the level of cruelty and disregard for human life by the suspects,” SP Sunday noted in the statement.
The police revealed the identities of the arrested suspects as follows: Sule Dairu (25),
Ali Bello (25), Mohammodu Hammed (21),
Ali Salihu Medoki (25), Ori Gambo a.k.a. Gambo Alhaji (20), Shaibu Umaru a.k.a. Gahi (45), Ibrahim Abdullahi a.k.a. Rusku (27), and
Suberu Lawal (40).
All eight men, during interrogation, confessed to playing different roles in the crime. Some acted as lookouts, others as gunmen, while a few were directly involved in negotiating ransom with the victims’ families.
The Command also recovered items belonging to the victims, which served as evidence linking the suspects to the attack.
Among the recovered items were a Tecno mobile phone, clothes (shirts and trousers), a pair of slippers, and other personal effects.
These, according to the police, were found in the possession of the suspects during the raid that led to their arrest.
SP Sunday further disclosed that the suspects had been arraigned before a competent court of jurisdiction where charges bordering on murder, kidnapping, and illegal possession of firearms were brought against them.
They have since been remanded at the correctional centre while investigations continue to apprehend other fleeing members of the gang.
The Commissioner of Police in Ekiti State, CP Joseph Eribo, while commending the efforts of the Rapid Response Squad, reiterated the Command’s zero tolerance for crimes such as kidnapping, banditry, and armed robbery.
He assured the public that the police remain committed to making the state unsafe for criminals and their collaborators.
Eribo also appealed to residents to maintain vigilance and promptly report any suspicious movements or strange individuals within their communities.
“Security is everyone’s responsibility,” he stressed, urging for stronger collaboration between the police, traditional rulers, community leaders, and ordinary citizens.