Eleven individuals who were taken captive while working on their agricultural plots in Etsako West Local Government Area of Edo State managed to slip away to safety after their heavily armed abductors fell into a deep sleep.

According to accounts from the freed captives, the armed gang became overwhelmed by exhaustion and fell asleep the following day, having forced the group to trek tirelessly through the dense forest all through the night.

While addressing journalists at the Edo State Police Command headquarters on Friday, Braimah Destiny, speaking for the group, recounted that he was heading back from his farmland when he suddenly encountered six gunmen wielding firearms and machetes. He noted that the criminals seized him along with 10 other individuals, dragging them into the deep forest. He recalled hearing gunshots fired by responding police units while they were being moved further into the bush.

Destiny explained that the captors continuously marched them from one forest zone to another from around 6:00 PM, walking through the darkness of the night. Eventually, the gang ordered them to take cover at a specific spot. Exhausted from the continuous trekking, the bandits fell asleep, allowing the 11 victims to quietly slip away and make their way directly to the police. He added that they endured severe beatings and harsh maltreatment during their brief captivity.

Another victim, Gloria Inyanugbo, who was also present, recounted a separate ordeal where she spent four days in the forest before her spouse secured her release by paying a ₦3 million ransom, alongside an additional ₦300,000 intended for the purchase of hard drugs, food, and other supplies for the criminals. She was abducted while working on her farm and questioned about her bank account balance.

She expressed amazement at the effectiveness of the police, noting that community local vigilantes caught two of the suspects in the bush while the police tracked down and arrested the remaining members, including one who had previously bragged about being untouchable.

In a related development, the Edo State Police Command announced the arrest of 32 suspected kidnappers during the month of June. The law enforcement agency also successfully rescued 38 kidnap victims through tactical deployments and intelligence-backed operations across the state within the same timeframe.

The State Police Commissioner, Monday Agbonika, shared these statistics during a press briefing in Benin City, adding that the command also apprehended 15 suspected cult members, three armed robbery suspects, 11 murder suspects, and 14 individuals implicated in sexual assault and defilement cases.

Agbonika reiterated that the police have sustained intense operations against criminal rings and stepped up intelligence-driven patrols. He maintained that their resolve to deny criminals any operational base in Edo State is yielding clear results. He credited these successes to the professionalism of his officers, seamless collaboration with sister security agencies, and vital, timely information provided by patriotic members of the public.