Kidnappers have abducted a police officer and four other people in Edo State, southern Nigeria, in two separate incidents that have intensified fears in Akoko-Edo Local Government Area, where residents say attacks have become frequent.
The abductions were reported in communities around Benin City, the Edo State capital, and in Auchi, a major town in the northern part of the state. The incidents came as community leaders said a nightly curfew has already been imposed in parts of Akoko-Edo Local Government Area, running from 9:00 in the evening to 6:00 in the morning, West African Time (WAT, GMT+1), in an attempt to slow the wave of kidnappings.
In the first incident, gunmen were reported to have seized Tope Oriloye, a female secondary school student, and Samuel Ilesanmi at the Makeke Primary Health Centre in Makeke village, near Ososo community in eastern Akoko-Edo Local Government Area. The abduction was said to have happened on Sunday, February 8, 2026, while Ilesanmi had taken his son to the health centre with his wife.
In the second incident, kidnappers were reported to have invaded the residence of Police Inspector Segun Obanowa, an officer of the Nigeria Police Force, in Auchi. Obanowa, who is from the Uma/Imoga area of Akoko-Edo Local Government Area, was abducted alongside his wife and daughter, according to local accounts. His wife was later released to raise money for the release of her husband and daughter.
Okay News reports that the incidents have renewed pressure on the Edo State Government and local authorities to strengthen security in communities that residents describe as increasingly vulnerable.
Bode Ekundayo, National Coordinator of the Movement for the Advancement of Akoko Edo People, said the kidnappers who took Oriloye and Ilesanmi had already contacted their families to demand a ransom. He said: “Daring kidnappers struck again in Akoko Edo, this time at Makeke village, less than a kilometre from Ososo in the eastern part of Akoko Edo, taking away a secondary school female student, Tope Oriloye and Samuel Ilesanmi on February 8, at the community health centre.
“In a similar operation in Auchi, kidnappers invaded the residence of Police Inspector, Segun Obanowa from Uma/Imoga in Akoko Edo and kidnapped him, his wife and daughter, later releasing his wife to go look for ransom to free her husband and daughter.”
Ekundayo said local hunters and vigilante groups mobilised to search nearby bushes through the night but did not find the victims. He added: “However the kidnappers called in the evening on February 9, to ask for N100 million for Tope Oriloye and Samuel Ilesanmi to be released.
“This trend of demanding N100 million to commence ransom negotiation is becoming a familiar thing, having manifested its irritating trend in previous kidnap ransom negotiations.”
Using a mid-market exchange rate of about ₦1,353 to $1, the ₦100 million demand is roughly ₦100 million (about $73,900).
The group urged the Edo State Government and the Akoko-Edo Local Government Area authorities to act quickly to stop what it described as a siege of kidnappers. Police in Edo State confirmed the incidents, but did not provide additional details at the time.
The report also came amid fresh concerns about highway attacks in southwestern Nigeria, after gunmen were reported to have killed one person and abducted seven travellers on the Sagamu-Ijebu-Ode Expressway in Ogun State, highlighting wider insecurity on key roads.
