On Friday, 26th, December 2025, seven residents were abducted by suspected bandits in the Ifelodun Local government Area of Kwara state.
According to residents and local security officials, the attack occurred around 7:00 pm on Friday, plunging the otherwise peaceful agrarian community into a state of panic.
A community leader and coordinator of the Kwara South Joint Community Security Watch Network, Elder Olaitan Oyin-Zubair, who spoke with The PUNCH, said the assailants struck in large numbers and moved aggressively through the settlement, firing gunshots to cow 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 described how the attackers moved from house to house, discharging firearms and creating a climate of terror.
“Unfortunately, before their arrival, the bandits had already abducted eight persons and wounded a woman. They were shooting indiscriminately to scare the locals,” he added.
Residents reported that several community members were injured in the chaos as they tried to flee, with some families abandoning their homes and seeking refuge in nearby bushes or neighbouring settlements.
Local hunters, vigilantes and security operatives, including soldiers from the 22 Armoured Brigade were deployed to the area following the distress calls, but Elder Oyin-Zubair said the kidnappers had withdrawn by the time they arrived.
Efforts to obtain an official confirmation and update from the Kwara State Police Command were ongoing as of Saturday morning. When contacted, the police spokesperson, SP Adetoun Ejire-Adeyemi, told The PUNCH that 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.
The incident marks another alarming case in a string of violent attacks that have shaken communities across Kwara State in recent months. Though historically regarded as one of the more peaceful states in Nigeria’s North-Central region, Kwara has in 2025 seen a troubling increase in kidnappings, armed assaults and community incursions by criminal gangs often described as bandits.
In neighbouring areas and other parts of the state, previous abductions, including attacks in the Isapa and Eruku communities, have involved multiple victims, including women and children, underscoring the intensifying threat.
With families still counting missing relatives and the precise number of abductees yet to be officially confirmed, residents continue to express deep concern over the growing insecurity.
Families and local leaders are urging state and federal security agencies to intensify protection and rescue operations, stressing that the repeated raids undermine public confidence and threaten the social and economic fabric of rural communities in Kwara.
