The Edo State Police Command has hinted that it rescued 11 of the 18 passengers kidnapped along the Benin–Akure highway, near Obarenren village in Ovia North East Local Government Area of the state.
Spokesperson of the Command, ASP Eno Ikoedem, disclosed this to journalists on Monday in Benin City.
She said that seven of the victims are still in captivity, adding that the victims were reportedly abducted on December 12, 2025, by gunmen who ambushed and forced their vehicle to a halt at gunpoint.
Ikoedem revealed that the victims were rescued by a combined team of police, army personnel, and vigilante groups who combed the bush in search of them.
Giving further details, she said police received a distress call and immediately mobilised, in collaboration with the army and local vigilante groups, to comb the bush in search of the victims.
According to her, the rescued victims have been reunited with their families, assuring that operatives of the command are doing everything humanly possible to rescue the remaining victims.
The Police spokesperson in the state, called on members of the public to remain calm, promising that the remaining victims would be rescued unharmed.
