In one of the most daring anti-crime operations in recent times, operatives of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) have smashed a network of kidnappers, rapists, and illegal miners in Okpella, Edo State, arresting 70 suspects, freeing hostages, and dismantling multiple criminal hideouts.
The sweeping clearance operation, executed by the Commandant-General’s Special Intelligence Squad (CG’s SIS) under the orders of Prof. Ahmed Abubakar Audi, mni, OFR, was a direct response to the cold-blooded killing of eight NSCDC personnel attached to BUA Cement Company last month.
Speaking to newsmen after the raid, the Commander of the Squad, Commandant AS Dandaura, JP, described the mission as “a decisive blow to a cartel of heartless marauders who turned farmlands into killing fields.”
“We launched a full-scale intelligence-led onslaught on these enemies of peace, who hid under the guise of illegal mining and charcoal trading,” Dandaura said. “They have for too long tormented innocent citizens, kidnapped farmers, and bled the economy of Edo State. Today, their reign has collapsed.”
The joint operation which was carried out in concert with the Nigerian Army and BUA International Cement’s security department, uncovered camps deep within the Okpella forest. Rescuers found terrified victims shackled and starved. Among them was Mrs. Martha Agbe, who had been held in chains for over a week after being abducted from her rice plantation in the Itsukwi community.
“They came with guns, pretending to be herders,” she recalled. “They beat us mercilessly and demanded ₦30 million ransom. I thought I would die there.”
The victims, now safely reunited with their families, wept as they met their rescuers. The Ogei-Ochi III of Itsukwi Kingdom, HRH Usman Suleiman, hailed the NSCDC leadership for what he called “a restoration of faith in state security.”
“For months, our people lived under terror,” the monarch said. “But today, the Civil Defence Corps has given us back our peace. The Commandant-General has written his name in gold.”
Commandant Dandaura reaffirmed that the war against criminal syndicates in Edo and beyond is far from over.
“This is only the beginning,” he warned. “The Corps under Prof. Audi is relentless. Every inch of Nigerian soil must be safe again and there is no hiding place for kidnappers, terrorists, or their collaborators.”
National PRO of the Corps, CSC Afolabi Babawale, Anipr, in a statement from Abuja, confirmed the operation and promised that the suspects will face full-scale investigation and prosecution.
