Fear and tension have taken hold of Ora, a community situated on the border between Osun and Kwara States, following a violent attack by armed men. The assailants kidnapped a retired officer of the Nigeria Customs Service, Emmanuel Owolabi, and shot dead another resident during their escape.
Wife Recounts Harrowing Ordeal
The victim's wife, Titilayo Owolabi, provided a chilling account of the Tuesday evening incident. She explained that her husband had visited her shop shortly after she closed around 6:30 p.m. on December 16, 2025. While he went elsewhere in the town, she returned to their home on Akisa Road to prepare dinner.
"After finishing the meal and while waiting for my husband, I heard gunshots at the entrance to our compound," Titilayo stated. She initially dismissed the sounds as coming from local hunters, but the gunfire quickly became intense and sporadic.
Upon hearing her husband's voice outside their fence, she went out to investigate, unaware he was in the clutches of kidnappers. "One of the gunmen jumped over the fence into our compound. Those I saw were young boys," she recounted. In a desperate attempt to communicate, she knelt and spoke to them in Hausa, as they were conversing in the language.
Her plea was met with violence. "Instead of responding, he started beating me. He asked me for money. While all this was going on, they were firing shots," she said. The terrifying episode culminated with the sound of a motorcycle carrying her husband away into the nearby bush. The two assailants in her compound then fled over the fence.
"My husband is a retired Customs officer. People should help us bring him back home safely," Titilayo appealed.
Community in Panic as Chief is Killed
The attack threw the entire Ora community into disarray, with residents fleeing in various directions for safety. As the kidnappers made their getaway, they reportedly shot and killed a village chief identified simply as Dennis, who was returning from his farm at the time.
Local sources confirmed that the chief's death occurred as the gunmen fled the area. The incident has left the boundary community in a state of profound shock and heightened anxiety.
Police Response and Jurisdictional Clarification
When contacted on Tuesday, the spokesperson for the Osun State Police Command, Abiodun Ojelabi, confirmed the abduction and killing. He assured the public that security forces had been mobilized immediately.
"Immediately the incident happened yesterday, police operatives and other volunteers chased after the gunmen. We are working hard to rescue the victim," Ojelabi stated.
He provided a crucial detail regarding the homicide, noting a jurisdictional aspect: "One person was shot, but not within Osun. Where they killed him falls within Kwara State." Despite this, he emphasized that more personnel have been deployed to comb the bush in the area in a concerted effort to locate and rescue the retired Customs officer.
The brazen attack, occurring right in front of the victim's home, underscores the persistent security challenges faced by communities in the region, calling for intensified collaborative efforts between security agencies and local volunteers.
