By Dare Akogun
All the 38 worshippers abducted during last Tuesday’s attack on Christ Apostolic Church (CAC) Oke Isegun in Eruku, Kwara State, have regained their freedom after days in captivity, The ICIR has confirmed.
The victims were freed on Sunday following a combined security operation involving federal and state agencies, according to our findings.
The rescue brings to an end a tense five-day manhunt triggered by the attack, which left three worshippers dead and deepened anxieties over rising insecurity in Kwara’s border communities.
In a statement issued on Sunday, the Chief Press Secretary to the Governor, Rafiu Ajakaye, said Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq confirmed the release of all abducted worshippers, attributing the breakthrough to the “hands-on involvement” of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
According to the statement, Tinubu cancelled his scheduled trip to the G-20 Summit in South Africa to oversee the rescue efforts.
“This is wholly due to the hands-on approach of President Bola Tinubu, GCFR, who has personally led the efforts to free the abductees,” the governor said.
“The abductees were freed today, November 23. The President had called off his scheduled trip to attend to the breaches in Kwara and Kebbi States and ordered heightened security deployments to Kwara.”
The ICIR had earlier reported that at least four new tactical squads, including intelligence and rapid-response teams from Abuja, were deployed on the President’s directive.
The governor also acknowledged the roles of the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA), the Department of State Services (DSS), Nigerian Army, Nigeria Intelligence Agency (NIA), Nigeria Police Force and local vigilante networks.
The Eruku attack is the latest in a string of violent incidents in Kwara’s border corridor with Kogi and Niger. Data gathered by The ICIR shows a surge in kidnappings, highway ambushes, and attacks on farming settlements in Ekiti, Kaiama and Baruten LGAs.
The assailants invaded the Church during a programme on Tuesday night, shooting sporadically and taking worshippers into the forest. Three people were confirmed dead, while one person remains hospitalised.
The abduction immediately drew national condemnation and renewed scrutiny of Nigeria’s security architecture, especially after the United States designated Nigeria a “Country of Particular Concern” over escalating violence.
By press time the community said they were yet to formally receive the freed abductees although the community confirmed they got called but confirmed receiving calls over their freedom shortly after 4:00 p.m. today.
“We were told they have been rescued, but we are still waiting to see them,” the presiding pastor, Lawrence Bamidele, told The ICIR.
The ICIR earlier reported that amid fear and grief, worshippers congregated to offer prayers for safe return of their members in captivity. Read the report HERE.
This report is part of The ICIR’s ongoing monitoring of Nigeria’s escalating kidnapping crisis and the failure of state and federal authorities to dismantle cross-border criminal networks operating across North-Central Nigeria, titled, “Terror Series“.