Men of Ogun State police command reportedly engaged in a gun battle with members of a suspected kidnap syndicate on Sunday, killing two of them in the Itori area of the state.
It was learnt that policemen at Ewekoro divisional headquarters received information around 7:30 am that some armed hoodlums with face masks were sighted hibernating in a bush behind ICT Polytechnic, Itori.
Confirming the incident, the Police Public Relations Officer in the state, DSP Abimbola Oyeyemi on Monday noted that the anti-robbery team of the Ewekoro division was quickly dispatched to fish out the hoodlums.
“On sighting the police, the gang opened fire on them and the policemen engaged them in a gun battle which lasted for about 40 minutes.
“During the encounter, two members of the syndicate were gunned down while others escaped with varying degrees of gunshot injuries,” he explained.
A locally fabricated shotgun, two live cartridges, two battle axes, empty shells of AK-47 rifle, three android phones, two small phones, 8 pairs of slippers, and two school bags were recovered from them.
However, Ogun State Commissioner of Police, Edward Awolowo Ajogun commended the courage of his men. He warned criminals to stop testing the willpower of the command under his watch, saying doing so will continue to spell doom for them.
Awolowo, who directed a massive manhunt for the fleeing members of the gang, reiterated the stand of the command to roll out all in its arsenal to wage war against crime and criminality to make Ogun State free of violent crimes.
