Hassan Mill, an Indian who was kidnapped in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital, has regained his freedom, the police have said.
Mr Mill and his Indian personal assistant, whose name was not provided, were last Wednesday kidnapped in Ibadan.
The Oyo State Police Command had on Sunday confirmed the kidnap of the two foreigners.
The spokesperson of the command, Olugbenga Fadeyi, had said in a Monday morning statement that the police recovered two bodies in an attempt to rescue the victims. He also said one of the kidnap victims escaped.
“On 12/12/2020 at about 17:23 hrs, one Hassan Mills ‘m’ of Panorama Farm Mekun, Oke Alaro area of Ibadan was abducted at the entrance of his farm by unknown gunmen who shot sporadically before taking him away into the forest.
“In a swift response, the DPO Oke Alaro, combed the forest with a view to rescue the abductor from his captors and also arrest the culprits. Consequent upon this, a team of ‘Ops Burst’ which was invited by the company arrived the area and proceeded to the forest.
“Not too long, one Army Lieutenant sustained gunshot injury on his right lap, and immediately taken to the hospital while the personal assistant to the abductor who was also abducted escaped during exchange of gunfire.
“On 13/12/2020, two corpses of one soldier and a civilian were discovered from the forest while a civil defence personnel also sustained gunshot injury after a search in the forest. It is worthy of note that movement of these foreign nationals most of the time are not known to the police authority in the state to enable professional advice to be given appropriately.
Rescued
The police, Monday evening, said Mr Mill has been freed by his abductors.
Mr Fadeyi in a statement sent to PREMIUM TIMES Monday evening said Mr Mill has been re-united with his family.
“Information received from DPO Oke Alaro revealed that Hassan Mill ‘m’ has been rescued from his captors and reunited with his family while he was taken to the hospital for medical attention,” he said.
“In a related development, no police officer who were involved in the rescue operation was kidnapped and the trending statement from mischievous writer online should be disregarded, please.”