The police command in Edo says it has arrested 113 suspected kidnappers in the early hours of Thursday across strategic locations in Edo Central.

In a statement by the command’s spokesperson, Eno Ikoedem, the police said police commissioner Monday Agbonika led a joint task force to foil the suspects’ activities.

The task force included the army, the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, vigilantes and local hunters. 

“Coordinated raids on the identified zango settlements in Agbede and Iruekpen were carried out where actionable intelligence indicated that suspected kidnappers and their collaborators converged to receive ransom payments, regroup, and blend with unsuspecting members of the public.

“The precision raids yielded the arrest of a total of 113 suspects. All suspects are currently undergoing thorough profiling to ascertain their level of involvement,” the police spokesman stated.

The police chief reiterated the command’s relentless, uncompromising commitment to decisively deal with criminals.

Mr Agbonika urged residents in the state to remain vigilant and continue to provide timely and credible information, while assuring that all intelligence received would be treated as confidential.