Pastor, Wife, Sister Survive Kidnappers’ Den After N50 Million Ransom Demand

EDO STATE, NIGERIA – An Edo-based cleric, Pastor Caleb Adavize Philip, has narrated the traumatic experience he, his wife, and his sister endured after they were allegedly abducted by kidnappers who demanded N50 million ransom for their release.

The pastor shared his story in a Facebook post on Thursday, June 11, 2026, shortly after regaining freedom from captivity. Accompanying the post were photographs showing him and his family members receiving medical treatment at a hospital, highlighting the physical and emotional toll of the ordeal.

According to Pastor Philip, the kidnappers held them for several days under harsh conditions while insisting on a ransom payment of N50 million. Although details regarding the exact location of the abduction, the duration of their captivity, and the circumstances surrounding their release were not disclosed, the pastor’s account paints a disturbing picture of the suffering they endured.

Describing the experience as one of the most painful episodes of his life, the cleric said he and his family were subjected to intense psychological trauma, constant fear, physical exhaustion, and repeated threats to their lives.

“I can’t forget this in a hurry, how we were kidnapped, myself, wife and sis for days and they were demanding for 50 million naira,” he wrote.

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The pastor further explained that the captives were forced to trek long distances through difficult terrain under both scorching sunlight and heavy rainfall while being monitored by armed abductors.

Reflecting on the ordeal, he stated that kidnapping remains one of the worst experiences any individual can face.

“The worst prayer you could pray for your enemies is for them to be kidnapped, yes, that’s the highest. The psychological trauma, the fear, the torture, rain, sun, insect bites, the trekking, the threat to life with ammunition, the huge amount being paid and many more. Lord save our nation. Thank you Jesus for our life,” he added.

The emotional testimony has attracted reactions from friends, church members, and social media users, many of whom expressed gratitude for the safe return of the victims while condemning the rising wave of kidnapping in Nigeria.

The incident adds to growing concerns over the persistent threat posed by criminal gangs involved in abduction for ransom, a security challenge that continues to affect communities across the country. Victims often face severe physical hardship and lasting psychological trauma, even after regaining their freedom.

Security analysts have repeatedly called for stronger intelligence gathering, improved surveillance of rural and forested areas, and enhanced collaboration between security agencies and local communities to combat the menace of kidnapping in Edo State and other parts of Nigeria.

For Pastor Philip and his family, however, the immediate focus remains recovery and healing after an experience he says he may never forget.

Their survival story serves as a stark reminder of the dangers posed by criminal kidnappers and the urgent need for lasting solutions to Nigeria’s worsening security challenges.

Pastor, Wife, Sister Survive Kidnappers’ Den After N50 Million Ransom Demand

How Kidnap of Adelabu’s Sister, Twins Was Planned – Suspects Confess Insider Role

IBADAN – In a shocking revelation, suspects arrested over the kidnap of former Minister of Power Chief Adebayo Adelabu’s sister, Mrs. Olaide Busayo Adegoke, and her twin sons have confessed how they meticulously planned the operation. The kidnap suspects disclosed that the initial plan was to abduct the ex-minister’s mother, but the plot later shifted to his sister and her 12-year-old twin boys.

The Oyo State Police Command, in collaboration with the Force Intelligence Department-Intelligence Response Team (FID-IRT) , paraded the suspects following a dramatic rescue operation on June 6, 2026. The victims were freed unharmed from a hideout in the Lado Community, Ayegun area of Ibadan.

Mrs Olaide Busayo Adegoke John-Paul and her twins

Police investigations revealed that the kidnapping was orchestrated from within. A personal assistant identified as Shehu allegedly provided the gang with critical inside information about the family’s daily routine, lifestyle, and security lapses. “He was the one who was first approached to give them inside information of how the family lives, their lifestyle, their routine and all,” said CSP Olayinka Ayanlade, Oyo State Police Public Relations Officer. The insider information allowed the gang to conduct weeks of surveillance, photographing the victims’ vehicles and monitoring the children’s school route.

Investigators also uncovered that the kidnap syndicate tried to recruit a household staff member named Segun in May 2026. When that attempt failed, the gang resorted to direct surveillance before executing the abduction on June 3, 2026. Segun Balogun a.k.a. Alawaye, a commercial driver from Iwo Road Motor Park in Ibadan, eventually joined the gang as a driver. He confessed to transporting the gang leader, Adewale Abolarinwa a.k.a. Oloro, to the residence where Adelabu’s extended family members live. “Alawaye applied his driving skill to conveying members of the kidnap gang to their operations and taking the victims to the safe house prepared for them,” a police source revealed.

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At about 7:30 a.m. on June 3, 2026, Mrs. Adegoke, 42, was driving her twin sons to school along Elewura Street, off Ring Road, Ibadan, when four armed men in an unregistered ash-coloured Toyota Corolla intercepted her vehicle. The abductors whisked them away to a three-bedroom bungalow in Ayegun area. The gang had initially planned to abduct the ex-minister’s mother, but surveillance showed that the twins’ mother often drove them to school — making her a more accessible target.

Following a distress call, the Inspector-General of Police deployed the FID-IRT and tactical teams from Oyo State Command. The breakthrough came with the arrest of Wale Abolalewa (alias “Oloro”) , who was already on the police watchlist. On June 6, 2026, at about 7:30 p.m. , operatives stormed the gang’s hideout in Lado Community. A lookout named Kelechi, who had travelled from Lagos State, opened fire on the security forces. Kelechi and another unidentified gang member were neutralized during the ensuing gun battle. The victims were found unharmed inside the bungalow.

Police arrested four suspects in connection with the kidnapping: Wale Abolalewa (“Oloro”) , the gang leader; Dare Oyedele (“Solution”) ; Semiu Ishola, 39; and Adeyemi Ayobami, 35. Items recovered from the suspects include three pump-action rifles, 14 live cartridges, an unregistered ash-coloured Toyota Corolla, a battle axe, hammer, face masks, substances suspected to be hard drugs, and criminal charms.

The police have cleared Oyo State APC governorship hopeful Senator Sharafadeen Alli of any involvement in the abduction, stating that no evidence linked him or the APC to the kidnap syndicate. However, investigators reportedly traced the operation to individuals described as associates of Ajiboye Sangogade, Personal Assistant to Chief Adebayo Adelabu. But Adelabu’s camp has dismissed the allegations, describing them as “false, malicious, and politically motivated.” In a statement on June 9, 2026, Adelabu’s media aide, Femi Awogboro, insisted that Sangogade’s name was never mentioned in the official police briefing as part of the kidnapping syndicate.

Oyo State Commissioner of Police, Abimbola Olugbenga, disclosed that some gang members escaped during the raid, possibly with gunshot injuries. He has urged hospitals, clinics, and traditional healers to report anyone presenting suspicious wounds. “Investigations are ongoing to apprehend other members of the syndicate,” CP Olugbenga assured the public.

How Kidnap of Adelabu’s Sister, Twins Was Planned – Suspects Confess Insider Role

Bandits Tie Women With Hijabs, March Them Into Forest in Sokoto Mass Abduction

SOKOTO – Scores of traders, farmers and travellers have been abducted on a road leading to Sabon Birni Market in Sabon Birni Local Government Area of Sokoto State, in the latest wave of violence to grip the northwestern state, where at least 15 communities remain deserted following coordinated attacks.

Residents said the attackers blocked a major route linking Sabon Birni and surrounding communities before launching their assault. An eyewitness, who requested anonymity, said the gunmen arrived at about 10am on Wednesday on nearly 20 motorcycles and opened fire, causing panic among people heading for the weekly market.

“We were sitting near the bridge when we saw them approaching on motorcycles. They started shooting from different directions and abducted travellers, farmers and some women working on nearby farms,” he said.

The witness said at least 20 people were taken away during the attack, describing the abduction in harrowing detail.

“It happened right before my eyes. Some of the victims were forced onto motorcycles and taken into the forest. When the motorcycles became full, the bandits tied some victims together in pairs and marched them into the bush on foot. Men were tied to men using their clothes, while women were tied together with their hijabs. Gunshots were everywhere,” he said.

The attackers did not enter Sabon Birni town itself but operated around an area known as Mangwaron Bullun, a junction connecting several communities, including Katsira, Zakin Ganga, Maskin Wuya, Garin Dango, Garin Gardi, Garin Bage and Zududu among others.

A son of one of the victims, identified only as Abdurrashid, told reporters that his mother was among those abducted while working on a farm. He said his father was ill and unable to provide for the family, leaving his mother as their main source of livelihood.

“My mother was working on the farm when they took her. Because my father is sick, she is the one taking care of us. I have now taken my younger siblings to stay with our grandparents,” he said.

Another resident said the exact number of victims remained unclear as many families were still trying to account for their relatives. “Some people may only be discovered missing after the closing of the market, when they fail to return home. Since Wednesday is the day of the Sabon Birni market, many of those abducted were traders heading there for business,” he said.

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The Wednesday abduction follows another attack on Sabon Birni town just days earlier. On Monday night, June 8, suspected bandits attacked the community, killing a member of the Sokoto Community Guards and abducting several residents from Kantin Gabas, located on the outskirts of Sabon Birni town near the community’s Eid prayer ground. A resident claimed that about 10 people were abducted during that attack, adding that it was the third attempted invasion of Sabon Birni using the same route.

When contacted, the member representing Sabon Birni Constituency in the Sokoto State House of Assembly, Aminu Boza, said he would verify the incident. However, he had not provided further details as of the time of filing this report despite repeated follow-up calls. Efforts to obtain comments from the spokesperson of the Sokoto State Police Command, DSP Ahmad Rufai, were unsuccessful as calls to his phone were neither answered nor returned.

In a separate operation on Wednesday night, police operatives from the Violent Crime Response Unit (VCRU) and the Anti-Kidnapping Unit successfully repelled an armed bandit attack on Bodinga Village in Bodinga Local Government Area. Security operatives engaged the attackers in a prolonged gun battle, neutralising three suspected bandits and recovering one AK-47 rifle, one magazine and 25 rounds of live ammunition. The Command confirmed that no civilian or security personnel casualty was recorded during the operation.

Earlier on June 4, troops of Operation Fansan Yamma and the 8 Division of the Nigerian Army successfully repelled separate attacks by suspected Lakurawa terrorists and bandits in Sokoto State, rescuing two kidnapped farmers from Tidibale village in Isa Local Government Area. Troops also foiled an attack on the Magonho community in Tangaza Local Government Area, though one civilian sustained a gunshot injury during the exchange of fire.

The abductions come less than two weeks after bandits killed at least 17 people, including seven visitors who had travelled for the Eid-el-Kabir celebrations, when they attacked Dangulbi community in Tureta Local Government Area on May 31. Residents said the attackers, armed with sophisticated weapons and riding on about 150 motorcycles, stormed the community on Sunday morning, opening fire on villagers, looting approximately 20 shops and forcing many residents to flee into nearby forests.

The victims included identified residents such as Munde, Nagoma, Abdullahi, Danbala, Munden Chana, Muhammadu Dan Amo, Hassan, Abubakar Danbaba and Yidi Bafillace. Five of the victims were Sallah visitors from Adarawa in Gummi LGA of Zamfara State, while two others were visitors from Gidan Gambo in Shagari Local Government Area, bringing the total number of visitors killed in the attack to seven.

“The bandits remained in the community for several hours after the attack, preventing villagers from recovering and burying the dead until late in the evening. Funeral prayers were eventually conducted after 9:30 p.m. when they left,” one resident said. Many residents have since fled Dangulbi and surrounding communities, seeking refuge in safer areas across Tureta, Shagari, Gummi and Bukkuyum Local Government Areas.

Amnesty International has condemned the killing, calling on Nigerian authorities to urgently investigate the attack, bring those responsible to justice, and strengthen protection for vulnerable communities. “The Nigerian authorities must urgently investigate this attack, ensure that those responsible are identified and brought to justice in fair proceedings, and take immediate steps to protect communities that remain at risk,” the organisation said in a statement.

The recurring attacks have forced residents to abandon their homes across multiple local government areas. According to a report by Daily Trust on June 5, no fewer than 15 communities have been deserted following coordinated bandit attacks carried out between May 31 and June 3 in Tureta and Sabon Birni local government areas. Residents told reporters that at least 52 people were killed in the attacks, including 46 in Tureta LGA communities and six others in Sabon Birni LGA, while hundreds of residents were displaced and dozens of houses destroyed.

Deserted communities in Tureta LGA include Dan Gulbi, Dansanberu, Jandutsi, Baga, Barayar Giwa, Birisawa, Mallanje and Ketare. In Sabon Birni LGA, displaced residents identified affected communities as Gangara, Dantasakko, Kube, Garin Idi, Rigo, Shadawa and Makwarruwa. A religious leader from Gangara community, who is currently displaced, said: “Our entire community has been displaced. We had no option but to leave because of the constant attacks. Several neighbouring villages have also been abandoned.”

In a separate development, the Sokoto State Police Command foiled a bandit attack on Imasa Matankari village in Tureta Local Government Area on June 2, recovering 25 cattle rustled during the assault. Security operatives from the VCRU, Anti-Kidnapping Unit, and personnel of the Nigerian Army’s Forward Operating Base responded to a distress call, engaging the attackers in a gun battle. The fleeing bandits abandoned all the stolen livestock during their retreat. “All 25 rustled cows were recovered in full and have since been returned to their rightful owners,” the command stated, adding that no lives were lost during the operation.

The recurring attacks have raised concerns over the worsening security situation in Sokoto State and its potential impact on farming activities ahead of the rainy season. Residents have appealed to both the federal and state governments to urgently deploy additional security personnel and improve road infrastructure in the area, arguing that poor access roads often delay security responses and leave communities vulnerable to repeated attacks. The Commissioner of Police in Sokoto State, CP Hayatu Hassan Shaffa, has called on residents to support security agencies with credible information, urging members of the public to promptly report suspicious movements and individuals receiving treatment for gunshot injuries.

Bandits Tie Women With Hijabs, March Them Into Forest in Sokoto Mass Abduction