More than 22 people remain in captivity across multiple communities in Kwara South, as armed bandits demand over ₦400 million in ransom, alongside food supplies and drinks, exposing widening security gaps in Nigeria’s rural heartland.
The abductees are being held in communities including Adanla, Isapa, Isanlu-Isin, and Owa-Onire—areas largely outside the reach of existing military and police deployments established by the state and federal governments.
Local leaders say the bandits relocated from communities such as Okeode, Babanla, and Eruku, where military bases were previously installed, to softer targets with little or no security presence.
Monarchs, Youth Corps Member Among Captives
Among those still held are nine people abducted in Adanla, including Oba Simeon Olanipekun, the monarch of Afin in the Ile-Ere District, and his son, Olaolu. A youth corps member kidnapped in December is also among the captives.
In Isapa, at least 11 residents remain in captivity, while two people abducted along the Isanlu-Isin highway earlier this year and two more seized in Owa-Onire in December are yet to regain freedom.
The Olowa of Owa-Onire, Oba AbdulRahman Fabiyi, who himself was abducted in 2024 and released after a ₦5 million ransom, told journalists that negotiations for the release of two abductees from his community are ongoing.
“We have paid ₦2 million already,” the monarch said. “The bandits have now reduced their demand to ₦800,000, plus a list of food items and drinks.”
He warned that without a permanent security presence, the attacks will continue.
“They operate freely here. Once they exhaust the ransom and supplies, they return to abduct more people,” he said, urging the state government to urgently establish a police station in Owa-Onire.
‘Forests Are Vast, Routes Are Many’
Oba Olanipekun, recounting his own ordeal in captivity, described why security agencies struggle to dismantle the gangs.
“The forests are extremely large, the routes are many, and they know the terrain because they have lived there for decades,” he said. “That is why they warn captives never to attempt escape.”
Security Officials Cite Terrain, Local Support
The Coordinator of the Joint Security Watch for Kwara South, Zubair Olaitan, acknowledged the challenges.
“The terrain—vast forests, hills, caves, and porous borders—offers safe havens for bandits,” he said, adding that some criminals receive food, shelter, and intelligence from locals.
He noted that weak surveillance infrastructure and limited inter-agency coordination have slowed operations, though recent joint patrols and forest guard deployments have led to arrests and the neutralisation of some suspects.
Despite these efforts, Olaitan confirmed no progress in negotiations for the ₦300 million ransom demanded for the nine victims abducted in Adanla on Boxing Day, December 26, 2025.
The bandits had initially targeted the community’s monarch, Oba David Olarinoye, but abducted nine residents instead when he was away.
Pregnant Woman Forced to Give Birth Near a Stream
In Isapa, the Akeweje of Isapa Land, Chief Idowu Sunday, said bandits are demanding ₦35 million for the release of 11 captives.
He disclosed that a pregnant Hausa woman among the abductees was recently transported by motorcycle to a stream in a neighbouring town when she went into labour.
Chief Sunday added that an earlier attempt to deliver ₦4 million backfired when two emissaries were seized by the bandits, increasing the number of captives.
“They are threatening to kill them and invade the community if we don’t pay,” he said. “We are begging the state government to intervene.”
Violence Spreads Beyond Kwara
The crisis extends beyond Kwara. In neighbouring Niger State, armed men recently stormed Kasuwan-Daji village, killing at least 30 people, looting shops, burning the local market, and abducting residents.
Witnesses told the BBC Hausa service that gunmen arrived on motorcycles from nearby forests and attacked without resistance, citing a total absence of security forces.
The massacre occurred just days after authorities announced the phased reopening of schools, following the abduction of more than 250 students and staff from a Catholic school in November—one of Nigeria’s largest mass kidnappings in recent years.
Although ransom payments are illegal under Nigerian law, communities say survival often leaves them with no choice.
As banditry spreads across western and central Nigeria, residents warn that fear, displacement, and silence are becoming the new normal.
“We are dying like chickens,” one villager said. “The government sees what is happening—but nothing changes.”
