Seven feared kidnapped by bandits in Kwara community

Suspected bandits on Friday evening reportedly invaded the Adanla community, a suburb of Igbaja in Ifelodun Local Government Area of Kwara State, and allegedly abducted no fewer than seven persons.

The attack, according to residents occured around 7pm on Friday, December 26, 2025, and threw the otherwise peaceful agrarian community into fear.

A community leader in Igbaja and Coordinator of the Kwara South Joint Community Security Watch Network, Elder Olaitan Oyin-Zubair, confirmed the incident to The PUNCH on Saturday.

According to him, the armed assailants stormed Adanla in large numbers, firing sporadically as they moved from house to house and forcing residents into submission.

“At about 7:30pm, we received a report from Adanla-Irese, a suburb of Igbaja, that bandits had entered the community,” Oyin-Zubair said.

“We immediately swung into action by mobilising hunters and vigilantes from Igbaja to the area. We also alerted the Brigade Commander of the 22 Armoured Brigade, who directed his men around the axis to respond swiftly,” he noted.

He added that soldiers later arrived in the community in two operational trucks to support local security operatives.

“Unfortunately, before their arrival, the bandits had already abducted eight persons and wounded a woman. They were shooting indiscriminately to scare the locals,” he said.

Residents told The PUNCH that several people sustained injuries while trying to escape, while many families fled their homes into nearby bushes and neighbouring communities for safety.

Efforts to get official confirmation from the police were still ongoing as of Saturday morning.

When contacted, the spokesperson for the Kwara State Police Command, SP Adetoun Ejire-Adeyemi, said she was yet to receive a detailed briefing on the incident.

“I am yet to be properly briefed about the incident. I got the information last night too, but as soon as I have details, I will get back to you,” she said.(Punch)