The Kogi State Commissioner of Police, Naziru Bello Kankarofi, said a joint security operation has rescued four of the abducted passengers in a commercial bus at the Olleh Community on Wednesday along the Okene–Auchi Federal Highway of the state. Armed hoodlums suspected to be kidnappers had attacked a commercial passenger bus along the Okene–Auchi corridor on 5th August 2026, killing the driver and abducting an unspecified number of passengers. In the statement issued on Sunday to newsmen in Lokoja, the police authorities noted that intensive bush-combing and intelligence-driven operations are ongoing to rescue the remaining victims and apprehend the perpetrators. The police command noted further that following the incident, the Commissioner of Police ordered the immediate deployment of tactical teams, in collaboration with the Nigerian Army, Nigerian Navy, other security agencies and local vigilantes to the areas to “sustain search and rescue operations.” It added that security operations have also been intensified across the Kogi–Edo border and identified forest locations linked to the incident to deny the criminals escape routes. The statement signed by the Kogi State Command’s spokesperson, ASP Saliu Oyiza Afusat, said: “The operation involves personnel from the Area Command, Okene; 77 Police Mobile Force Squadron, Okene; Okene Division; Adavi Division; Anti-Kidnapping Unit of the Kogi State Command; Violent Crime Response Unit; as well as detachments of the Nigerian Army operating from Forward Operating Bases within the area. “The operation has also received operational support from the Edo State Police Command, including its Anti-Kidnapping Unit and other tactical personnel. “To deny the criminal elements any escape route, the Command has further strengthened joint operations across the Kogi–Edo boundary, with security personnel conducting coordinated clearance operations and intelligence-driven patrols in identified forest locations linked to the incident. “The operation continued into Saturday, 8 August 2026, with tactical teams advancing towards identified locations of interest along the Ajaokuta and Adoko axes. “Technical support, including the deployment of drones by the Nigerian Army and Edo State Police Command, is also being utilised to enhance surveillance and intelligence gathering during the operation”. The Command, therefore, assured the public that the operation is ongoing and will not be relaxed until the remaining victims are rescued and those responsible are brought to justice.
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